Bloody Prayer
by Acolyte of Truth
Summary: As a child, Naruto was attacked. For his own safty, he is sent to the peaceful villaege of Yugakure where he meets a strange man who will teach him about a near extinct religion. Soon plots open up, and it becomes unclear wo is working for who. FemHaku.
1. A Hard Decission

Greetings, this is my first story and, unlike most starting authors, I don't give a fuck if you review or not, but I will read your criticism or praise if you do decide to respond to something. This doesn't mean I will respond back to them or you directly, but I will listen to any advice you may have. Maybe. I will continue writing no matter what. This fanfiction is dedicated to Hiden, Haku and Zabuza. May they rest in peace or, in Hidan's case, escape from accursed holes, Amen.

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Disclaimer: The only stuff I own in this thing is my intellectual property. What that is, exactly, will be found out later.

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Chapter one: A Hard Decision

Sarutobi Hiruzen was a wrinkled old man with grey hair and a beard on his chin. He was the Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato, and was known as the God of Shinobi, due to his outstanding knowledge of various jutsu.. Yeah, right. What kind of god was he if he couldn't even protect a four-year-old child? None at all, that's what. These were his thoughts as he sat in the hospital room of Naruto Uzumaki, the blond haired, whisker marked child that was known as the Kyuubi jinchuuriki by most of the village of Konoha, said four-year-old he failed to protect.

He was broke from his musings when his long time friends, teammates, and advisors burst into the room. One was Utatane Koharu, an old woman with her grey hair done up in a bun on the back of her head. The other was an equally old man Mitokado Homura with slightly spiked grey hair with a beard and green-rimmed glasses over his eyes.. Both were panting slightly from a seemingly long sprint. Homura was the first to catch his breath.

"Hiruzen-kun, we came as soon as we there was a problem. What is it?" he asked exasperatedly, taking his eyes off Sarutobi to steal a glance at Naruto, whom he just noticed. Said blond had bandages here and there with an I.V. needle sticking out of his arm.

Koharu, following her companion's glance, also saw the state the boy was in. She hurriedly ran over to him with the speed you wouldn't expect from a sixty-something-year-old, all the while calling out "Naruto-san!" and proceeded to read the medical chart attached to his bed.

Whilst this was happening, Sarutobi turned back to Homura and said, "I'll explain, but first, where is Danzou-san? He was supposed to be with you." This was asked with such a questioning tone that you would think he was a child himself. He was obviously expected himself, yet he was nowhere to be seen.

It was Koharu who answered, her voice full of impatience "He is currently at the council annex covering your ass and overseeing that the civilian branch of the councle doesn't try to pull any shit while also preparing for Kumo's arrival. You know he would be here to see his student if he could, but as I just explained, is unable to at the moment with all the shit currently piled on. Now, care to explain how he got all these stab wounds and lacerations?" this was her answer whilst indicating to the clipboard near the end.

Yes, one may ask how this one boy can be connected to so many seemingly important individuals, or how he came to be in the hospital. Well, the answer is pretty simple. You see, there was once a Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato, to be precise. He was student to one of the sannin, Jiraiya, and married to a beautiful, red haired woman by the name of Uzumaki Kushina, a kunoichi from the former Uzu no Kuni, that was destroyed years earlier, but that's a story for another time.

On the tragic day of October tenth, a baby was born to them. This baby was Naruto. However, the reason it was tragic was because it was on this day the Kyuubi no Kitsune attacked, ruining thousands of lives, civilian and shinobi alike. That is, until Minato took charge.

Using a fuuinjutsu he invented, called Shiki Fuuin, he summoned the Shinigami to take away his soul in exchange for sealing the Kyuubi's into his son's body. Now if only his wife survived childbirth, we may not be here now. Unlikely, but maybe.

So, thinking something like this may happen after foolishly announcing his newly acquired status, Sarutobi thought it best that he and the other two former students of the Nidaime Hokage be his guardians. But, having seats so high on any sort of council took up a lot of time, so they all decided that he would need help with their duty. Thus, we have Danzou, who trained Naruto every day in the shinobi arts until he dropped since the day he learned to walk. Horrible, some may say, but, without this training, this day could have been far worse. Anyway, while Danzou also had a seat on the council, he was also in charge of his own group of ANBU that he named Ne, or Root. So, he simply sent one of them as a representative. Funnily enough, the Nidaime also created Ne.

Of course, some things needed to be handled personally, like setting up for the arrival of Kumo's ambassador, who would help resolve the problems of the last Great Shinobi War between the two, and hopefully delay another one from happening.

So, to people who were still cross after the Kyuubi attack and who wanted retribution in the form of a dead Naruto, this was the ideal time to strike. Which is what they did. Mob-like in size. But we will let Sarutobi explain the rest of the incident.

"Well, I would, but I think it would be best if the one who found Naruto be the one to explain. Inu-san, get up and explain, if you would." Said Sarutobi to a man recently left unnoticed on the floor.

He appeared to be between seventeen and twenty, with silver hair that was raised to the air, slanted to the left. One could tell he was an ANBU from the white dog mask he sported on his face, though one would not expect it from the footprints that trailed the back of his dark cloak, one set larger than the other.

As Inu stood, he stared at the two advisors, and even through the mask, one could plainly see he was slightly pissed at the two. Hell, his anger was palpable, 'whatever happened to knocking?' he thought, but the two just absentmindedly shrugged it off. He eventually got over it and turned to address the Hokage, only to find him struggling not to burst out laughing at the sad fact that one of his best shinobi was caught off guard by two old farts. Granted, they were as old as him, and that together, they were nearly impossible for anyone under sannin level to take on and win, but he still found it funny as fuck.

He finally lost the fight and burst out laughing. His two former teammates were now getting annoyed at the Hokage's apparent show of senility for forgetting the seriousness of the situation at hand, and together turned to face Inu, only to find him curled into the fetal position in the nearby corner, the back drop changing to purple with squiggly black lines going in a downward direction (emo corner, for those who don't know) at being laughed at for this. Finally having enough, the two shouted at the supposed ANBU, "Oi, get off your ass and tell us what happened to Naruto-san!"

Finally composing himself, along with the Hokage, Inu finally spoke, all previous hostilities forgotten, "Forgive me, Mitokado-sama, Utatane- sama, allow me to recount what happened and how I came across Naruto-kun."

xxxflashbackxxx

Inu was currently on his patrol route. As an ANBU captain, he wondered why he even had a patrol. Shouldn't some newer squad be doing the remedial work? But, he supposed, it could be worse and just be his squad doing this. So, he reluctantly carried on, grumbling under his breath about squad, protocol and command reforms..

He was suddenly shaken from his revere for several reasons. One, being that he felt a decent amount of both chakra and killer intent a few dozen meters away. Two, being the sounds of a nearby battle taking place. And, finally, the best reason for him to stop his important train of thought and suddenly stop completely was the incoming kunai that would have hit him in the face if he had not snatched it out of the air.

All serious now, he pocketed the stray kunai and went to investigate. What he saw next would haunt him for a while.

As soon as he reached his destination, he quickly called in the rest of his squad. "Tora, Washi, Kuma, get over here immediately, we have a situation!" and with that, he rushed to the aid of the blond boy in the epicenter of a mob, blood and bodies strewn about the street.

xxxendflashbackxxx

"When I reached Naruto-kun, it was only then that I realized that there were a few high-level chunin in the crowd. My suspicion is that they got the drop on him while his back was turned. With out Danzou-sama's training, it is very likely that Naruto-kun would not have survived the encounter." Inu stood their in front of some of the most powerful people in the village, waiting for some semblance of a verbal response, instead of the pitiful looks for the boy and the hateful looks screaming for the death of, what he hoped was, the mob that attacked the said boy, not the messenger.

Finally, the Hokage granted his wish, "Do you have anything else to repot Inu-san?" the old man asked gruffly, wanting to wrap this up so that he could deal prepare for the paperwork that was sure to come from the undertakers office do to the influx of bodies.

"Actually, yes, I do Hokage-sama," said Inu as he pulled a sheaf of papers from his pocket. "It would appear as if the mob consisted of seventy-three people total, sixty-one civilians and twelve chunin, with only twelve civilians and two chunin remaining after I and my squad 'broke-up' the fight, three of the civilians and one of the chunin getting away. It would also seem that at one point in ambush, Hyuuga Hiashi attempted to intervene until he was incapacitated due to a kunai hitting him in the lung. He is currently in the intensive care ward of the hospital but is expected to make a full recovery in six to eight weeks. (1) All the names of the assailants have been compiled into this report." With that the masked man indicated to the papers in his hand and waited for further orders.

With a heavy sigh, the Hokage said, "Thank-you Inu-san. Please hand your report into my secretary and inform your squad that I will have a mission for you all in the morning. Dismissed." With that the masked man left in a swirl pf leaves via shunshin no jutsu. When the man was gone the three turned to each other once again.

"What can we do, surly we can't keep him here, there is too much of a risk this could happen again and the outcome could be worse, and as much as Danzou has helped, I refuse to let him in the Root headquarters. We have to get him out of the village!" This comment came from an exasperated Koharu, who feared desperately for Naruto.

Homura then decided to step in. "We can't. First of all we can't just send him off, we have no idea when he is going to wake up, and where would we send him? Besides, what would Danzou think? He knows Naruto-san better than any of us and would know what is best for him."

"Actually, I believe Koharu-chan is right," said a voice from the open door way. All three turned to see a man with black hair and a heavily bandaged face with the cotton wraps coming over his right eye and an x-shaped scar on his chin. He also appeared to be missing his right arm. This was the commander of Root, the self-proclaimed war hawk, Danzou. "In fact I have the perfect idea," said the man with confidence.

"And what would that be my old rival?" asked the aged Hokage.

"Glad you asked Sarutobi-kun," replied the man, "You see, Naruto-kun's greatest aspiration is to be a shinobi of great strength. He also wants to learn jutsus from all across the land. So, my plan is that we send him to Yugakure no Sato. It is a very peaceful place, more so than us, remaining neutral for all these years, and even if they find out about the Kyuubi, it is highly doubtful they would resort to violence. It would also be best if the villagers didn't know about this meaning he should be transferred ASAP. However, it is your decision in the end, what do you say?" finished the man.

Sarutobi took his time deciding what to do. He looked from Danzou to Homura to Koharu to Naruto and finally back to Danzou. Eventually, he heaved a great sigh and with a nod tiredly said, "Do it."

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Well, here's the prologue. Takes up about five fucking pages on Microsoft word. So, as you can see, there will be many differences between this and the original. If you don't like it, don't read it, and certainly don't bitch about it to me. And remember, if you have an idea you think I won't just completely disregard, review. Now, on to explanations and translations.

(1): To those who know what the repercussions of this will be and don't like it, I suggest you either get over it or find another story to read.

Sama/san/kun/chan/ect.: Suffixes used to describe how well you know a person and your relationship with them.

Inu: Dog.

Kyuubi no Kitsune: Nine-tailed fox.

Tora: Tiger.

Washi: Hawk.

Kuma: Bear.

Kumo: Cloud.

Uzu no Kuni: Land of whirlpool.

Yugakure no Sato: Village hidden in the hot springs.

Konohagakure no Sato: Village hidden in the leaf.

Jutsus:

Shunshin no jutsu: Body flicker technique: a technique designed to allow the individual who uses it to move at high speeds whilst concealing oneself in either a puff of smoke or a swirl of leaves, as is the conventional method, giving off the illusion of teleportation.

Well, I think that's all. See you later. Maybe. Sayonara.


	2. Awakenings and Meetings

Konnichiwa. Watashi wa Acolyte. To those of you who aren't yet tired of my verbal abuse, welcome to the second chapter of "Bloody Prayer"! In this chapter Naruto is actually awake, so stop your bitching. I also have an idea for a new fanfic soon, so I may switch between them, but want to at least finish chapter three first. Now, onwards to chapter two!

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Disclaimer: If I did get any sort of monetary gain from writing this, I would buy Microsoft and replace the damn paperclip in Word. Considering the fucking thing is still asking if I want to delete the break line that separates everything, I must assume no envelope will be sent to me containing five hundred billion dollars any time soon.

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Perhaps it would have been best to add this last chapter? Oh well.

Key:

"talking"

"_thoughts"_

'_noise'_

'_**exaggerated noise'**_

"**Bijuu talking"**

"_**Bijuu thoughts"**_

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Chapter two: Meetings

'_drip'_

'_drip'_

'_drip'_

At this point, Naruto hazily opened an eye. It would appear that he had somehow ended up in a cave with stalagmites and stalactites sprouting from the ground and ceiling respectively. The last thing he remembered was that bigoted Konoha citizens and shinobi ambushed him.

xxxflashbackxxx

Naruto was wandering aimlessly at the moment. Since Danzou canceled training for the rest of the month, he had to entertain himself. He thanked the man for everything he had done for him, but he was just…off a little bit. He was aware that Danzou only wanted the best for Konoha, but he didn't know what extremes he would take to ensure its safety.

Lost in thought as he was, he didn't notice the large congregation of people around him. That is, not until a civilian threw a rock at his head. He stumbled and only then noticed the situation. Now, at his level he could probably take out all the civilians, even though he was probably mid-gennin level in strength. However, there were also chunin thrown into the mix, meaning he would most likely get his ass kicked. With this thought he pulled out a kunai and prepared for the worst.

He did well, talking down numerous civilians and one chunin who got to arrogant when the tide started to turn. But, he apparently gained favor with some god who rewarded him with the appearance of Hyuuga Hiashi. He was on good standing with all members of the shinobi council, which is probably why Hiashi wasn't killing him right now, but he personally would have preferred if Aburame Shibi had been the one to show up, considering his kikai bugs would have made short work of everyone their.

At some point though, Hiashi fell due to a kunai to the lung, dangerously close to his spinal column, and with all attention once again focused upon him, he fell, his kunai cast away at some point in the fight, crippling his efficiency since he was a kenjutsu fighter. Just before he blacked out, he saw four figures land near the back of the crowd. Then all he saw was white.

xxxendflashbackxxx

Well that was great and all but it still didn't explained why he was in this cave, so, in fact, it wasn't great at all. Oh, how he hated irony. At least he could see due to the torches that lined the walls.

As he started to look for an exit, he soon ran into a grusum sight. Bodies were strewn haphazardly everywhere. As he took a closer look he recognized them as people that attacked him. He counted eight in total. As the stench assalted his nose, he felt the urge to vomit, but held it down. Just wanting to get away he ran until he bumped into something.

Looking up he barly registered an old oriental looking gate with numerous kanji carved into it. What really caught his attention, though, was the pair of glowing red eyes and vicious grin behind it. Nine beams of light appeared to let him see into the cage further. He quickly relized they were nine tails. Connected to a fox. He quickly drew a conclusion.

"How is this possible? You're the Kyuubi, right? you should be dead. Oh God, I'm dead. I'm in hell!" while Naruto was comically freaking-out, he almost didn't here what the giant kitsune had to say.

"**That's Jashin-sama, mortal**." The beast rumbled while Naruto stopped running in circles and looked at him confused.

"Who?" he replied stupidly, forgetting the current situation.

"**This **_**God**_**, as you call him, his name Jashin-sama, and I and the other Bijuu, are his loyal tools of mass destruction. We are natural disasters sent by him to villages so they know he is still watching over them, and wants tribute. But we are the other way he gets that. Understand**?" supplyed Kyuubi, trying to explain to him the ultimate force in the universe.

"Well, sort of, I guess, but if this Jashin-sama, as you call him, is all-powerful why doesn't he handle this himself, and why am I only hearing about him now? Where the hell are we anyway?" asked the slightly confused blond, trying to get a better grasp of Jashin and his surroundings.

"**Okay, last question first. We are technically in your mind. Wait, on second thought, no, I'll save that question for last. All right, anyway, I never said Jashin-sama was all-powerful, nothing ever can be, Jashin-sama is, however, all knowing, and still the most powerful being in this, or any other plane of existance. You see, Jashin-sama was bored one day and decided to create this plane of existence. Actually, he created several, and keeps watch over all of them. At first all was great, all idolized him and brought him blood tribute, killing others who rivaled him in his name. However, soon people started doing this for two reasons. One was to gain standing and influence so they could eventually be in control, the other as an excuse to kill true believers after they were corupted by others. Jashin-sama, fed up with this, abandoned these worlds to live in his own plane of existence, taking those true believers with him and cutting off his direct contact with all other worlds. He also seemed to favor your world, as he left most of his knowledge here. He created us to help feed him souls of infidels, hoping to remind them just who created them. He even gave us the power of dimension hopping. That better**?" finished the beast.

The blond then answered. "Almost," he said, "but you still haven't compleatlysaid where I am. What do you mean by we're in my mind?"

"**Oh yeah, that**." He said with disdain. "**Well, basically, your Yondaime sealed me in you while I was serving Jashin-sama. This is why you were hated in Konoha, hence, no longer there**." The beast drawled while Naruto was shocked at its bluntness, that he was inside him, and that he wasn't in Konoha anymore.

"Then where the fuck are we and why?" the boy demanded, angry and shocked at not being in Konoha anymore.

"**Well, as I said, yor hated and it's for your safety, as Danzou put it. We are now in Yugakure**." Naruto was slightly shocked he knew of Danzou. "**Don't be surprised. I have access to your subconscious, so I know things about you that even you don't know. Now listen, we don't have much time left. When you wake up, you will be in the village leaders office. You have been out of it for about four days. Talk to him about joining the Shinobi academy. There will be a teacher there I want you to meet. You will learn more when you see him. Good luck**."

And with that he saw white once more.

Office Building:

Naruto awoke with a start, the smell of sulfer overtaking his senses. he eventually overcame the scent and started taking in his surroundings. The room was pretty empty and plain. He was on a couch and to his left was a hardwood desk with a few papers spread across it. But it was who was at the desk that caught his attention.

The man at the desk was tall, 6'4, with black hair and reading glasses over his green eyes. He wore average shinobi garb, only his shirt and pants were black instead of blue like in Konoha, and he had a smoky grey flak jacket, opposed to the green he was accustumed to. He appeared to be in his late thirties.

Standing, the man approached his position on the couch and bent down to his level. He then smiled at him, and spoke, in a smooth and friendly voice. "Hello Uzumaki Naruto, I'm Nagana, Houshi Nagana, and I'm the leader of Yugakure no Sato, where you currently are. Danzou told me much about you when he dropped you off. He told me you had some prior shinobi training and you will start the new semester with everyone else in two days. Is there anything else you would like to know?"

As Nagana backed away, Naruto stood on shaky legs, looked him dead in the eye despite the thee and a half-foot difference and with some bitterness said "Two things. One, where will I be staying. Two, what will I do in those two days before the academy?"

Nagana tossed him a pair of keys and said, "There's an apartment already paid off on the east side of the village, five blocks from the academy. Danzou-san dropped your stuff off there. Secondly, you should rest. You do remember what happened, right?" the last was asked with much concern, slightly surprised that the kid wasn't shocked, but hid it well.

"Yeah, I got my as kicked by a bunch of civilians." Was his annoyed answer. He seemed to forget about the high-level chunin.

Nagana was slightly taken aback, his friendly smile dropping slightly as he was reminded of a certain white-haired shinobi currently on probation. He was so shocked he barly registered the fact that Naruto turned his back and was about to leave. He just had time to call out that he had to be at the academy at seven a.m. before he disappeared completely. With a sigh he sat back down and thought of what might come next.

xxx/two_days_later/xxx

Naruto awoke at six in the morning and got ready. In his spare time he got use to the layout of the village. It was smaller than Konoha thankfully, so didn't take both days. He also did a little light training. His apartment was nothing special and had everything he would need, including clothes.

Since he didn't expect much on the first day, he just wore a t-shirt and shorts with his kunai and shurikan holsters strapped to him, and a new wakizashi strapped to the small of his back, a gift from his caretakers.

When he arrived he went through the two hour entrance ceremony. when that was over with, he tiredly got up and found his classroom as he waited for his sensei.

Nagana's Office:

Nagana sat at his desk signing papers and sipping coffee. He let his mind wander to a topic he knew he would get complaints about, that being the new sensei at the academy. Neither he or the teacher wanted it, but it was either this or a gennin squad for the jounin, but it was to late to get the latter, so a three-year probation job at the academy it was. He just hoped the kids didn't come out too scarred.

Academy:

The door opened and in walked a tall man of thirty-two, though his slicked-back white hair may throw you off. Standing at 6'3 and coupled with his fierce purple eyes and his scowl, he was intimidating. He had on black shinobi pants and a black cloak buttoned up only to his ribcage with only his open grey flack vest on top, showing off his muscles. Naruto also caught a glimpse of something silvery with beads before the man put it in his cloak. Immediately some of the girls gave a dreamy sigh, making all of the males have an eye twitch.

Clearing his throat and adjusting the hitai-ate with three slanted vertical lines around his neck, he spoke in a voice tht depicted a cruel nature "Seriously, listen-up you fucking gaki. For the next three years you will all refer to me as Hidan-sensei," Here he paused and gave a sick grin. "And welcome to fucking hell, seriously."

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Well, that was a pain in the ass to write. As for Nagana, he came off the top of my head. It appears we have a few twists as well. Onto translations.

wakizashi: A short sword commonly strapped to the back and used as a side arm. Also has a common use in seppuku.

Hitai-ate: Forehead protector.

Gaki: Brat.

Next time is a time skip to Naruto's graduation and some extra. Ja ne.


	3. The Power of Jashin

Ohayo, come back to read my crap, I see. Speaking of crap, I decided that instead of writing a new story, I would add a few… _twists_ to the story. What these twists are shall be explained later. Sorry for thhe delay, but i ran out of August minutes for my internet soooo... yeah. Enjoy, I guess.

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Disclaimer: Here's a scenario of what would happen if I did own Naruto:

In a dark room, a man is seen tied to a chair, unclean and unshaven, the only light being the flickering bulb above his head.

Suddenly, light violates the mans pupils as he looks up to see a darkened form descend the steps of the basement, stairs creaking with each step the form takes..

It stops in front of the man and pulls out a magnum, pointing the gun at the mans face. The figure then says, in a Japanese accent, "Hello Mr. Acolyte… my name is Masashi Kishimoto. You ruined my Naruto franchise, so I am here to kill you." With that, Kishimoto pulls the trigger and Acolyte's head innards are splattered against the wall.

And that's why I don't own Naruto.

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**Chapter three: The Power Of Jashin-sama**

As the man, now known as Hidan, announced his name, Naruto felt a burning sensation penetrate his skull. It was then that he heard the demonic kitsune thrashing and raving in his head. "**He's the one! He carries Lord Jashin's symbol on his body, and his very presence reeks of God's gift! Confront him after this pitiful class and demand to be brought into the light! Tell him that the masters pet is inside the, and he shall understand." **And with that, the voice was gone for the rest of class and the throbbing stopped.

Naruto just sighed, thinking, "_This is gonna be a long ass day, I just now it_." And with that his head hit the desk in despair.

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Hidan was in a pissy mood. If the fact that he had to teach wasn't enough, he learned that it was where he spent the worst years of his life, at the academy, surrounded by damn children. He hated children, but this needed to be done in order to retain his jounin status. If not for the free booze in the jounin lounge, he would have told Nagana to shove it up his loose ass and been done with it. But it was really good booze.

It was then that he noticed a blonde haired hell spawn with his head down and looked down at his attendance list. He quickly found the blondes name and hollered "Uzumaki, wake the fuck up or I'll seriously shove my foot up your as all the way out your throat!"

The kid just looked up and gave him a questioning look. It was then that Hidan relized that there was something different about him. He looked more serious than the other heathens in his class, hell, he had a fucking sword on his back, while the other little shits had just that, shit. But he also seemed familiar, his aura more than anything. Hidan shrugged it off and decided he would ask him later, he still had a class to teach, no matter how reluctant he was. The only joy he got would be the thought of his students pissing themselves in fear of him.

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When class let out five hours later, the students rushed for the door in fear of their cruel teacher and his harsh words. They spent the day learning the theory of and how to access their chakra. Very few had managed to do it today so it looked like the rest of the week would look the same.

Naruto was the only one remaining as he walked to Hidan's desk at a slow pace. When he reached it Hidan looked down at him and said, "Ahh, Uzumaki, I was hoping to talk to you. What do you need?"

Naruto just scratched the back of his neck looking unsure of what to say before he resigned himself to his fate. "Umm, the masters pet resides within?" he still couldn't believe such a stupid saying had any significance.

Hidan's eyes widened dramatically as this was said. He heard of this happening before and hurriedly asked which one. When he heard it was the Kyuubi he probably would have died if he could have of shock. Realizing what this meant he quickly wrote down an address and said "When Sunday comes, come here and you shall be trained in Jashin-sama's teachings." With that he was gone. He had to prepare.

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As Hidan walked down the foggy streets and allys of Yu, his mind was racing. How could this happen? How could Jashin's greatest weapon be sealed away, into a child, no less? Why didn't he know of this until now?

Of course, his biggest question was, was he ready to train the catalyst that would possibley restore Jashin's name back to its former greatness?

So caught up in his pondering he was that he didn't notice the streets slowly clearing. He didn't notice the sun setting. he didn't notice the person in front of him until he walked direcly into him.

There, on the ground next to him, was the one person that could match him in skill in the entire village. The man taller than him by several inches. The man he hated the most in the entire village.

Nagana looked truly shocked to see Hidan wondering the streets, sober at that. something had to be wrong with him. "Are you feeling well, Hidan?" was his concerned question as he helped the secret Jashinist off the ground.

The violet eyed sensei just ignored the question and walked past Nagana with a slight growl. Nagana just looked back at him, worried about him and the kids he was teaching.

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**Four Years Later:**

Four years passed by rather swiftly. For Naruto, those years were filled with blood, sweat and tears, especially blood. On that Sunday three years ago, he learned all about Jashin and his gifts. He also learned that there were supposed portals hidden in each world that the bijuu used to help keep track of the various planes of existance, and that it was possible for humans to pass through them. he filed that information for later.

That's how he also learned that Jashinists were immortal, that and when he stabbed Hidan by accident when he got mad and the albino just shrugged it off, even with a wakizashi in his fucking stomach and his blood pooling around him. Hidan then learned that his lords ultimate tool granted the little shit regenerative abilities. Naruto's training got much harder at this discovery. Hidan's probation ended last year and the other students never saw him again. Naruto, however, saw him every week.. Unfortunately.

Last week, students that showed promise had the chance to graduate early. Naruto was the only one who did and thanks to Hidan, was now the sadomasochist's apprentice. He was currently in Hidan's basement, around his Jashin monument where they prayed. Under him was Jashin's pentagram. They were getting ready for tonight, when Naruto's final test would take place. After this, he would be a full-fledged Jashinist. The test was to wipe out a large population of heathens with the help of the one who trained you. Jashin would first have one pray for an hour, after which ones weapon of choice would be blessed and they would gain temporary immortality. Hidan once said he wiped out a place called Uzu with his uncle who had his feet apparently encased in cement and now resided somewhere in the waters that surrounded Mizu no Kuni, but Naruto tuned him out once he started rambling.

Finally the prayer was done and there laid his wakizashi, the blade now red and serrated, as well as two inches longer, with a one-inch thick rope coming from the hilt. Officially, the two were on a mission as to catch others by surprise. Rising up, Naruto picked-up his hitai-ate and tied it to his forehead. He then wrapped the rope around his torso and let the short blade hang limply at his side, the tip of the blade reaching just passed his knee.

Whilst attaching his weapon, he heard Hidan saying he would have killed everyone eventually as they ascended the stairs of his house. He didn't really care. For now, it was time for Jashin to have his massacre. But first, some preparation was in order.

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Yugakure may have been small, but it still took long as hell to draw a giant pentagram in blood. He couldn't begin to imagine what Hidan must have gone through during his rites in Uzu, which was twice as large as Yu.

Five hours later had the two Jashinists on the outside of the village, ready to start the carnage. But Hidan first had a few words to say to his apprentice. "Well kid, this is seriously it. After this we must part ways and continue to spread Jashin-sama's name. Just remember, kill everyone and do it silently. We don't want this whole shithole coming down on top of us. We'll meet at the tower when we finish for the last of the prey. Happy hunting!" and with that, they were off.

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If making the pentagram was hard on Naruto, then killing everyone silently was utter hell on the shinobi. He did manage to kill most people without trouble. Then again, most were civilians. He was fast enough to dodge most chunin strikes and only suffered a few grazing hits before he felled them too with his blade.

It was the jounin that were the real pain in the ass. If not for his praying earlier and his Kyuubi regeneration, he would be dead or unconscious. Most of them were taken by surprise when a kunai to the chest, neck or head didn't kill them and that was there downfall. The more experienced ones however took cunning. He remembered seeing Hidan doing his voodoo ritual once and decided to try it out. When he did get an eventual hit he licked the shinobi's blood and started to stab himself. Thanks to the bigass pentagram he did damage to the bastards as well.

Hours later it was nearing sunrise and outside the tower stood a bloody and cut up Naruto and a sorta tired and barly injured Hidan, both with damaged clothes one's less so than the other's.

Turning to his student Hidan let out a chuckle of "you look like shit" while Naruto just flipped the silver haired man off. Regaining posture, Hidan said, "Come on, the last one lies just beyond this door and you lose immortality at sunrise. Let's go." And with that, Hidan kicked down the door.

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Nagana was awoken when he heard the door downstairs be kicked in. his tall form rising from his desk he took a quick glance out the window an was frozen with shock. From his view he could see bodies lining the streets with blood still flowing from them. It must have taken an entire shinobi force to take them down.

But, how could this happen without his knowledge or without him waking up sooner, and why? Why his peaceful village, the last truly neutral military force out there. What had he done, what had they done, to deserve such a fate?!? He was now truly pissed for one of the first time in his life.

He got ready to attack when his office door opened, expecting the enemy, until he relaxed slightly at seeing the injured forms of one of his best jounin and his most gifted gennin, but the enemy could be using a simple henge to disguise themselfes.

He quickly tensed back up when he relized they were supposed to be gone until tomarrow. He almost dodged the thrown wakizashi but was nicked slightly, blood slowly seeping from the shallow wound seconds later.

Pulling a kunai he demanded, "What is the meaning of this?!?" only to get a giant three bladed scythe thrown at him in response, curtsey of Hidan. Unlike the wakizashi, however, the scythe seemed to follow his movements, until it got embedded into a wall.

Seeing his chance, Nagana charged the two 'defenseless' shinobi, but the two just pulled the ropes of their respective weapons and watched as he dodged the scythe. However, the wakizashi cut his cheek as blood trailed from him, getting onto the blade as he just continued on, impaling Hidan's kidney.

He just watched in shock as the man held him there with a sick grin on his face, saying "That stings." before hiving a nod in Naruto's direction.

Craning his head, he watched as the gennin licked his blade and stabbed… his hand? He watched in curiosity as blood dripped freely from the blonde's hand as he stepped in it and started to draw something with his foot. Out came a circle with a triangle in its middle. He faintly heard him mutter something about a 'Jashin' before the child started to change.

His skin became the deepest black, with white lines where his bones would be. He then lifted his wakizashi and, again, stabbed himself in the stomach. But, this time was different. He felt a pain in his stomach and, sure enough, there was an identical wound to the one the blonde inflicted upon himself. Before he could scream as the kid violently ripped the blade out, it was stabbed back in. in his throat. As he choked on his own blood, Hidan let his body fall limply to the ground as Naruto removed his blade and reverted to his original form. Nagana, once the leader of Yugakure no Sato, died in his office. Seconds later, the sun rose.

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Two figures were seen standing on the outskirts of the now obliterated village. One silver haired priest and his now blonde equal. The blonde turned to Hidan. "Shouldn't we burn the bodies?"

The silver haired immortal just scoffed. "Why should we? Everyone else is dead, the fact that your still alive is proff of that, so no one cares if this place is a dump or not. That's your problem, you over-complicate things." Here, he paused, then grinned. "Oh yeah, I just remembered! Here you go. Welcome to the club. Good luck on your journy. See ya!" And with that, hidan turned and started to leave.

Naruto was just staring in shock at what his ex-sensei had placed in his hand. His own Jashinist's rossary. He turned to see Hidan a good distance away now , and saw him call out over his shoulder. "And don't forget! Everything is for Jashin-sama!" He then saw him slash at the hitai-ate tied around his neck, and then continue walking until he was out of sight.

Naruto untied his own hitai-ati and stared at his reflection for a few moments. Slipping his rossary around his neck, he then took out a kunai, slashed and retied his hitai-ate, and took off into the direction of the rising sun. he would wake-up the next morning with a sight imparment that was quickly healed, and a massive sunburn that wasn't.

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Well done and done. I know that the previous chapters may have seemed rushed, but that's for two reasons. One, these were prologues for the story, and, two, I want to get to the good stuff. Also, I will no longer be putting up translations for words you should know such as hai and that shit. You don't know what a fucking word means, you do a fucking Google search. I will only put up origanal techniques and words you probably don't know. See ya. Acolyte, out.


	4. The Return

Hello. For those of you who are still reading this, let me first state that I'm surprised your still reading this. To you, I tip my hat and say this, good sir or madam, this chapter will be longer than the previous and shall remain that way, just for you. There is also a challenge here. Now without further ado, I present you with the entrée. Bon appetite. Also, I got my first reviews. It's actually very ironic that Naruto Namikaze the Legend was the first to review, he was the one who inspired my to write this. Also, to Some reader, I fixed the mistakes and I just got nodachi confused with wakizashi. Thanks to you others out there as well numbering two.

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Disclaimer: Insert witty comment here that explains that I own nothing directly tying to Kishimoto's Naruto.

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Chapter four: The Return and then Off Again

It was a beautiful day out in the countryside of Hi no Kuni. The birds were chirping, squirrels scooting around forging for food, even a bear of two lazing around by a stream.

Many would have found this setting serene, but not the person currently wondering down the beaten trail about a days travel from Konohagakure. This stranger was about 5'4, and had striking blonde hair that stood up on end, much to the man's annoyance. He wore traditional black shinobi sandals, black pants taped to the ankles with white medical tape, and a black unbuttoned cloak with a plain white shirt underneath. Two things were off though.

One was the wakizashi hanging from a rope tied around the man's torso. While this in itself wasn't very strange, the weapon was frightening with its serrated edge and red colour. The other was that he seemed to be muttering something under his breath whilst holding a shiny object in his hand close to his face, slightly twitching when a bird took off or chirped, or when a squirrel jumped from tree to tree.

He finally seemed to have enough when a squirrel landed on his head. "Jashin damned rodent! Get the fuck off me! You're ruining my prayers!" he screamed before forcefully ripping the animal off his head and throwing it to the unforgiving ground, where he proceeded to stomp the life out of the creature, splattering its blood and parts of its organs every which way. Suffice to say, all the other animals ran for their lives, not wanting the same fate to befall them.

If you don't know who this individual is yet, then seriously, why are you here, go read the last couple of chapters. Now then, this individual was known as Uzumaki Naruto, Jashin worshiper and once shinobi of the now destroyed Yugakure, as indicated by the hitai-ate worn on his head to keep the hair out of his eyes. The three vertical lines depicted on the metal had a horizontal slash going through them, showing he no longer had any ties to said village.

Why was he headed to Konoha, some may ask. Well, the answer was pretty simple, but if you keep reading, you'll find out eventually, so back to the story.

After feeling satisfied that the furry intrusion was fully dead, the blonde went back to mumbling. "As I was saying, thank you Jashin-sama for this glorious day you have given us who serve you, and may I help you find more people to help carry out your wishes, and that squirrel get the punishment it fully deserves. Amen." And with the he convulsed a bit, a pleasurable shiver going down his spine, a feeling he had come to know as Jashin acknowledging him.

As Naruto finished his prayer, he fully relized he was never going to reach Konoha if he kept going at this pace, and sped up a little. He was hell bent on reaching the village by at least sundown, and he was going to do it, damn it.

As he veered off into the trees, moving like the squirrel he killed before it messed with him, he felt a slight burning sensation in his skull, before a voice reached his ears, deep and booming. "**Remind me again why we are traveling back to this hellhole that tried to kill you all those years ago**." Naruto no longer flinched when the tool of destruction spoke to him, after becoming used to it after years of communication.

"_Well, Kyuubi, we're headed back to see how everyone's holding up. Besides we need a HQ, wouldn't you say? Also, if those Jashin damned bastards try to pull anymore shit, well, Jashin-sama just gets more people to judge. It's a win-win situation, ne? Either way, I still have dreams involving the place, and those dreams will help spread Jashin's name._" And with that answer, the kitsune was satisfied, and the burning sensation stopped.

In a few more hours, he would reach Konoha.

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Hokage's Office:

We come once again to the scene of a depressed Sarutobi Hizuren, but with a difference. This time he is seated at his desk with a bottle of sake in one hand, his head using the other as a pillow, and a mess of papers scattered around the office. In short, he looked like shit.

As he took a swig of his alcohol, he thought back to all that had happened nine years ago. First, a four-year old Naruto was hospitalized and, without him even being able to say goodbye, he was forced to send the kid to a different village without being able to see him grow-up. The only satisfaction he got from that was the fact that the boy was safe and that he had gotten to torture and execute the bastards that got away after the fact personally. But alas, that was a hollow joy.

A few weeks later, during the Kumo treaty celebration, the eldest Hyuuga heiress, Hinata, was kidnapped in the dead of night, and there was nothing to tie Kumo to the incident without the risk of starting another war. The hospitalized Hiashi was devastated and was put under suicide watch in the recovery ward after hearing the news.

He was then forced to, with his teammates and Danzou backing him, send the new ANBU captain, Uchiha Itachi, to eliminate the rest of the Uchiha clan because they were planning a coup de tat of the village, leaving only his younger sibling, Sasuke, alive, while he was forced to become a nuke-nin. He apparently also tortured the kid and he was now hell bent on revenge, not understanding the circumstances, and hopefully he never will.

However, seeing the Uchiha made up about, say, ninety-six percent of the military police, crime rates soared. Just another way for the fuckers to screw him over.

Then Yugakure, the peaceful village that he sent Naruto to, was utterly destroyed, with reports of no survivors. Hell, even Danzou, the war hawk, was surprised. Who the fuck would attack Yugakure, the neutral, peaceful, never-raised-a-kunai-in-violence, YUGAKURE for fuck's sake.

And, just last week, one of his chunin attempted to steal a scroll of forbidden jutsu and flee the village, killing a fellow chunin in the process and just barly being apprehended by ANBU on border patrol. He was also worrying about Danzou, the man would disappear for weeks on end after the massacre, and that couldn't be good.

So, in a nutshell, the last decade of his life pretty much sucked ass. He would have killed himself already if he didn't think there was still a way to repent for all the mistakes he made or for the fact that people still needed him.

As he swallowed another mouthful of the burning liquid, he heard a knock at the door. Sitting upright, he said, "Yes, what is it?" poking his head through the door, an ANBU member in a Neko mask proceeded to explain the intrusion.

"Hokage-sama, their was an altercation at the west gate. Someone without the proper credentials attempted to break in and has been apprehended at ANBU HQ. The individual is being overseen by Ibiki-san and Anko-san and is asking to see you. What should we do?"

Giving a deep sigh, the old man just said, "I'll be there in five minutes, keep him occupied." With that the ANBU was dismissed allowing the Hokage to sober up a bit.

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It was late afternoon when Naruto approached the gates of Konoha. As the thirteen-year old attempted to pass through, he was stopped by a man in a black cloak with its hood up and a mask. "Halt. You must first show your legal papers and a form of identification before entering Konohagakure no Sato." It was obvious this guy was new to gate duty due to the fact that he failed to notice the headband with a huge gash in it. So he did the sensible thing. Delivering a swift kick to his crotch, he watched the man before him crumple whilst hearing a muffled sob.

Stepping over the sad excuse of a man he once again continued on his way before being surrounded by three more ANBU, obviously senior members due to the battle worn masks. Naruto only had time to say, "Oh, shit." before being subdued and blacking out.

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Sometime later, the Jashinist awoke to blackness and an itching face. Feeling slightly groggy, he muttered, "Where in Jashin's name am I?" before the burlap sack blocking his vision was removed and a bright light blinded him.

He took a quick glance around the room, seeing it was all stark white with a hot light hanging directly above him. The room smelt strongly of disinfectant and bleach. He also noticed he was tied to a chair with wire cutting into his wrists and ankles. It was then he noticed the people in front of him.

One was a giant man that reminded him or a bear, with black boots, pants and trench coat, with a purple undershirt and black bandana with the symbol for Konoha on it. It was also note worthy to mention his scarred face.

His companion was a purpled hair woman who dressed very provocatively. With only a beige trench coat, a skirt, sandals, shin-guards and fishnets, along with a regular hitai-ate, Naruto voiced his thoughts out loud.

"Am I about to be raped?" Needless to say, both people both face-faulted.

Quickly regaining composure, the man asked, "Why would you say that?"

As if it were the simplest fact in the world, Naruto said, "Well, I'm tied to a chair surrounded by a man in leather and a slut." Not the smartest thing to say.

The woman quickly grew enraged at being called a slut and held a kunai to the kid's throat. "I'll give you one chance to answer. Who are you and why are you here? How do you have a hitai-ate from an extinct village?" this was asked with so much venom, any mortal would quake in fear, coupled with the woman's glaring eyes.

Naruto was unmoved. He simply said, "Get the Hokage and I'll talk."

"Your not in position to be making demands, you little shit. Now answer the question." Hissed the woman, growing more enraged at the fact that the kid wasn't afraid.

"Not without the Hokage." He said stubbornly.

The woman let a smirk come to her face and said, "That's just the answer I was hoping for." Before raising the kunai and bringing it back down. Her hand was caught mere inches before the kunai hit his hand.

"Seriously, how old are you kid?" (1) Was the big man's flat reply. It was obvious he wasn't talking to Naruto. "Besides, Anko, you can't needlessly harm a prisoner. I swear, you're too impulsive at times."

The woman, Anko just whined. "Come on Ibiki. The kids obviously not gonna talk. Let me hurt him. Pwease?" the last thing was said in a baby voice as her eyes grew big, with sparkles and tears welling within, a pout on her face. The puppy eye no jutsu.

Ibiki was not moved. "Whatever the fuck your smoking, share. And the Hokage is already on his way. We'll just wait for him." Anko huffed.

A few minutes later, a swirl of leaves signified the arrival of the Hokage's entrance. He noticed an impassive Ibiki and a slightly miffed Anko. He then saw the thirteen-year-old child bound to the chair in ninja wire, with blonde hair, blue eyes, and a strange necklace with a pendant of a circle with an upside-down triangle in it. He felt like he knew this kid, but was still slightly drunk. "Who are you and why do I have to be here?" asked the Hokage tiredly.

"Come on jiji, don't tell me you don't recognize me?" said Naruto with a shit eating grin.

Sarutobi was confused; the only person who still called him that was his grandson, Konohamaru. The only other person to ever do that was killed in a massac-. His train of thought abruptly stopped when he noticed the hitai-ate the kid wore and whisker-like marks on the kids face.

Trembling, the old man ventured a guess. "Naruto?"

"So you do remember me!" said child said with a happy voice.

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After explaining that Naruto survived because he was on a "mission" when the massacre happened, he was promptly released. He now stood in the Hokage's office after being reacquainted with Danzou, Koharu and Homura. He was in the middle of becoming a Konoha shinobi.

"Okay, seems the paper work is in order and since you were already a gennin, you just have to go through a thirty-day probationary period of D-rank missions, and you will be assigned to a gennin team. You can start in the morning." said the Hokage. Naruto slumped at hearing 'D-rank missions' and knew what they entailed, but accepted reluctantly. This was going to be a long month.

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Naruto was walking through the Hokage tower, approaching the office. His probation ended today and he was off to meet his new team.

As he reached the door, he heard a whiney voice say, "Please Hokage-sama, give us a higher ranked mission. I'm tired of D-ranks." Whoever that voice belonged to, Naruto could feel for them. One of his crappier mission involved giving a lesson at the academy about the dangers of drunken kunai handling. He himself was never stupid enough to do that, but Hidan, being a drunk, had done it many times, so he knew first hand what the dangers included. This doesn't mean he enjoyed recounting his experience. The kids also probably shit themselves from his gruesome retellings, but who cares?

Not really caring that there were already people in the office, Naruto opened the door and saw several people. One was the Hokage, another was a man with traditional shinobi garb, a jounin vest, facemask, hitai-ate covering his left eye, and silver hair pointed towards the sky at an angle, reading an orange book with his visible eye portraying shock and inquiry at his intrusion, like he knew him or something.

Another was a kid with white shorts, blue shirt with a white and red fan on its back, hitai-ate, and black hair cut in possible the worst style ever, resembling a duck's ass.

The last was a girl with a red dress with spandex biking shorts and her headband being used as a hair tie. He immediately didn't like her.

As the door opened, team 7 turned to face a blonde kid with black pants, cloak, white under shirt, sword attached to a rope and a silver necklace. They noticed he wore two headbands, a Konoha one on his forehead and one around his neck with three lines with a slash passing through them all.

Sasuke just stared with intrigue wondering who he was, while Kakashi knew who he was instantly. He was informed he would be getting a new student to complete the team, but never thought it would be _him_. Hell, last he heard, he was dead. Sakura was worried. She noticed the slashed headband, not paying attention to the one with Konoha's symbol.

Grabbing a kunai in defense, she shakily asked, "Why is a nuke-nin here?" she was answered by the Hokage.

"He is Uzumaki Naruto and your new teammate, so please put your kunai away. He was a shinobi from Yugakure before it was destroyed. Naruto, these are Haruno Sakura, Uchiha Sasuke, and Hatake Kakashi. Now, I have a C-rank mission for you team 7."

They perked up at hearing this, glad they didn't have to be stuck with more D-ranks. However, Naruto still had something to say. "Wait, you mean I'm on a team with a pervert, guessing from the book, a fangirl, who can't keep her eyes off pretty boy with his hair in the shape of a duck's ass, and said kid? What the fuck?"

Before the Hokage could diffuse the situation, Sakura had to open her mouth. "Don't say Sasuke-kun's head looks like a duck's ass! He's way cooler than you, trying to look cool with a stupid sword!"

Before a retaliation could be made, Kakashi decided to take initiative. "That's enough you two, we're on the same team now, so get along. Please continue Hokage-sama. While on the outside, Kakashi seemed impassive, on the inside, he was reliving his days in the emo-corner. This team was going to kill him.

The now completed team 7 once again turned towards the door when the Hokage called 'Tazuna-san'.

In walked in a man with grey hair, goatee, hat and sake. He glanced over at the kids and was about to say something degrading when he caught a look in the blonde's eyes and felt the aura he gave off, practically daring him to do something stupid. He wisely decided to just introduce himself. "My name is Tazuna, super bridge builder of Nami no Kuni. You are to escort me back home and remain with me until I finish a bridge, under stood?"

The kids just nodded, glad it wasn't a D-rank, but Naruto was tempted to kill the drunk. He hated drunks. "Get packed and meet at the south gate in an hour. Dismissed." Said Kakashi before disappearing in a swirl of leaves. The others just left the normal way, the door.

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What will happen next time? What is Naruto's dream? What happened to Hidan? Stay tuned to find out.

(1) If you can guess where I got this line and from who, I will grant to you one wish within the story as long as it doesn't ruin my whole main concept. I will announce a winner at the end of chapter six. Respond any way you wish. If you all fail to guess, closest one gets it. Hint, the exchange was between Ibiki and Anko, not just Ibiki.

In other good news, in one weeks time, i can test to get my permit! And thus there was much rejoicing. Either way, I'll start the wave ark next time with my own personal twists. Expect the chapter out before October. Bye.


	5. Are We There Yet?

Hello people. I have but one thing to say and that is VOTE DAMNIT! this is possibly the only chance you will have to have your say in this story. Also, some people have been asking about Hinata, and I will say this, no, she won't be raped, no she may not get a major part in the story, yes she will be in the story. Any of this could change if you get your guesses in! Results and the chapter will be posted on October 5. That is all.

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Disclaimer: I claim nothing. As my uncle would say, 'Get the fuck over yourself.'

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Chapter5: Are We Fucking There Yet?

It was currently 0900 at Konoha's south gate. We can see four figures; the bitchy Sakura, spewing seamlessly endless nonsense, the anti-social Sasuke, looking as detached to the world as ever, the lethargic Kakashi, reading his porn, and the pissed Naruto, looking as if he was about to kill something, twitching every so often. Why were they here? Well, they were waiting for the thrice-damned bridge-builder Tazuna so that they could accompany him to his homeland of Nami no Kuni. Where was Tazuna? Only the bartender knows. Either way, if Sakura didn't shut up soon, Jashin was going to have another soul.

Kakashi, being the perceptive man that he was, decided that he would help the girl live a bit longer. It was his responsibility after all. "Ne, Naruto-kun, why don't you tell us about yourself?"

Naruto, hand on his hilt, looked at the masked man curiously. "What do you mean? You know my name and where I'm from. Isn't that enough?" he apparently forgot about the pink haired hell spawn after being called -kun.

The man just replied with, "You know, likes, dislikes, dreams. Anything to help us know you better." Completely ignoring his question.

Sakura felt the need to add her two cents. "Yeah. And how did you survive. Last we heard your village was destroyed." She said with a questioning tone. Even Sasuke looked mildly interested, but kept quiet. Moody bastard.

Seeing he had nothing better to do, he relented to their questions. "Fine. I serve Jashin-sama and do his bidding, I guess I like that. I dislike drunks and people who don't know when to shut the fuck up." He paused here to glare at Sakura, who seemed oblivious to it all. "I suppose my dream…" here he gave pause, building suspense and causing the others to lean in, even the gate guards who had nothing better to do. "Well, that's none of your damn business." Everyone listening just face-faulted. Naruto just continued. "And I only survived Yugakure massacre through a stroke of luck. Me and my sensei were on a mission at the time, and decided to part after we saw what happened. Satisfied? Now what about you?"

Before they could respond or ask 'who's Jashin', a very drunken Tazuna came stumbling up to them. "Yo dudes, wazzup?" slurred the pitiful man in front of the quartet. Mumbling something about not getting paid enough, Kakashi ordered Sakura to assist the drunken mess and they then set off.

The guards just turned to each other. "Bet you twenty bucks at least one of them doesn't come back."

"Deal." And they then shook on it.

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The road was quite peaceful at this time. The wind silently blowing through the trees, clouds overhead blocking out harsh rays from the sun, and the animals were strangely quiet. Now, if only Sakura would stop pestering the client about what Nami was like.

As they walked along, they failed to notice two forms rise up from the depths of the puddle they just passed. They charged, wrapping Kakashi in the spiked chain they had between their gauntlets. They wore the symbol of Kiri with a scratch down the middle.

As they started to chuckle, one said "One down," they gave a tug and Kakashi was now several pieces on the ground.

"And four to go." Finished the other as they renewed they charge, headed for Sasuke, who threw several shurikan with great accuracy, pinning the chain to a tree, forcing them to disconnect it.

Where were Sakura and Naruto? Well, the pink haired one was hyperventilating after seeing her sensei cut down. Naruto just looked on passively, guarding Tazuna. When they disconnected, one came after him. He just smirked, brought up his wakizashi, and prepared to be hit by the clawed gauntlet.

Meanwhile, the real Kakashi was perched up in a tree, watching the fights, and seeing who these guys were really after. He wasn't really expecting anything from Sakura, he got what he expected from Sasuke, but was curious about Naruto. Turning his eye in that direction, it went wide when he just saw him standing there, letting one of the attackers charge at him.

Kakashi leapt out of his tree, racing to get to Naruto in time, the attacker 10 feet away.

8 feet.

5 feet.

2 feet. Kakashi was so close.

1 foot. Just a little further.

_Squelch._ Kakashi stopped in his tracks, a foot away from his student. Who had a gauntlet going through him, blood pooling at his feet. Kakashi fell to his knees, trembling. Sasuke, who just tied his guy to a tree, was shocked that Kakashi was on his knees, then looked to see what he saw, and felt sick. Sure, he just met the guy, but he already liked him better than Sakura. He felt sad that he was probably dead. Both Sakura and Tazuna were throwing up from the scent of all the blood.

The attacker just laughed. "Haha. How pathetic. He couldn't even defend himself." And with that, Gouzu pulled his hand from the blonde's horrendous shoulder wound, or tried, before a hand gripped his wrist. "What the fuck?!?" was all he got out, as he gripped hi own arm to get better leverage, before he felt a blade slip into his other arm and out his own shoulder, before being twisted and brutally ripped out, causing his muscles, flesh, tendons, blood, pieces of bone, anything inside his arm to go flying, and causing him to scream. "AAARRRRRHHHHGGGHH!!!"

When the others heard this their heads snapped up, only to see Gouzu gripping the stump where his arm should be, before he got kicked away, and a smirking Naruto stalked over to him. "That stings." The one armed man was trying to get away, whimpering, before a hand landed on Naruto's uninjured shoulder, causing him to stop.

"That will be enough Naruto. We need to get your arm fixed. There was a deadly poison on their gauntlets." Kakashi said.

Naruto just flicked his blade clean of gore, before stabbing his own shoulder, getting all of the infected blood out of his system. Sure, he didn't need to, but he needed to put up an act for the others. After bandaging it, he looked to his sensei, who just shook his head at the kid's persistence. "Can I kill him now. He attacked me and needs to die."

Kakashi wasn't surprised that Naruto killed before, he had been traveling for several years, and probably got attacked by bandits often. He just shook his head. "I'm sorry Naruto. They may have valuable information, and then we would have to hand them over to the ANBU. But, if it makes you feel better, you can cauterize his wound so he can live long enough to be picked up."

Naruto just sighed in despair, but let Kakashi heat up his wakizashi, which he then pressed to the now tied-up Gouzu, as he listened to the man's yells of pain, causing Meizu to wake-up, Sakura and Tazuna to cringe, Sasuke to re-evaluate this guy's uselessness, and Kakashi to wonder what was next.

The silver-haired man then took it upon himself to interrogate the nuke-nin and found out that Gatou was the one to employ them. He then turned his cold gaze to Tazuna.

"Tazuna-san, please explain to me why you hired a gennin team to protect you from other shinobi. Surly you know how the ranking system works." If his gaze was cold his voice was like the ninth circle of hell. Tazuna did the smart thing and told them of the monopoly Gatou placed on his village and that the whole village pooled their money just to get this mission. He even tried to gain sympathy from them by telling them of his daughter and grandson, who would be sad and then hate Konoha if they didn't help him and he died. When he was done Kakashi finally calmed down and turned to the team and asked, "Do you want to continue?"

Naruto, at the prospect of getting someone else to sacrifice, enthusiastically nodded, as did Sasuke and Sakura. Sasuke so he could become stronger, and Sakura because she was his helpless fangirl. And so they once again set off, leaving the two enemies tied to a tree for the ANBU to pick up, none of them noticing the figures sitting in the trees, watching the whole exchange.

"What are your orders?" asked a feminine figure to one that was covered in the trees' shadows, the only signal of someone being here were the orange eyes visible through the shadows and the dim glow of a cigarette handing from his mouth, the smoke wafting around him.

The voice that came out was smooth and quiet, but cracked as if it wasn't used much. "Report to Zabuza about the proceedings, I have something I need to take care of."

"What about Gouzu and Meizu?"

"Leave them, Haku."

"Hai." And with that, the feminine figure disappeared into a mirror that formed behind her. The other just grunted before vanishing further into the shadows, leaving a cold gust in his wake, and parting thoughts.

'_So he's the one, eh? We'll see just how valuable you are, Uzumaki Naruto.'_

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After team 7 got off the boat from Konoha to Nami, they continued walking down the now foggy path, Naruto still irate at not killing anything yet that week. He would just have to pray more than usual. (1) But, he would have never guessed a drunk could build a bridge that big.

All was nice, even Sakura seemed to shut up after the battle that happened a few hours ago. Off to the side, a bush suddenly rustled and Sakura threw a kunai at the disturbance, still jumpy. Naruto then walked over and pulled back the foliage, showing a scarred shitless rabbit, even though the kunai missed by a mile.

He turned back to the group, showing the animal, and announced, "We have dinner. How long till we get to your house anyway?" Tazuna just replied 'a few more miles' and was about to take off again, Naruto rejoining the group, when Kakashi stopped them.

"Wait. That rabbit has a winter coat in the middle spring. That means it was raised indoors." Then a faint whizzing sound was heard.

Kakashi's eye widened and he shouted "Get down!" and tackled Tazuna, the rest following his lead, before a massive zanbatou imbedded itself in the tree next to them a good six inches and a man appeared on its handle.

5'11, short messy brown hair, bandage mask and bare chest with a sword carrier and shinobi pants, this man was fearsome. He chuckled and pulled his weapon from the tree, and stood in front of them, revealing his headband turned to the left, a scratched Kiri symbol on it.

"Momochi Zabuza, A-rank nuke-nin wanted for an attempted coup on the Yondaime Mizukage, along with the rest of the seven shinobi swordsmen. Also known as the devil of the bloody mist. Why are you working for Gatou?" Kakashi recited from what he read in the Bingo book. He was on guard and lifted up his headband, revealing a red eye with three black tomoe circling his pupil. Naruto noticed how shocked Sasuke looked at seeing this.

Zabuza just chuckled at this, and hefted his huge blade onto his shoulder. "Tsk tsk. Sharingan no Kakashi, so knowledgeable, yet so quick to jump to conclusions. Relax, we aren't here to fight, just talk. You showed your skill when taking out Gouzu and Meizu."

The group relaxed slightly, but Kakashi was curious. "What do you mean by 'we'?"

"Oh, right. Get down here you two." From the trees came one of the figures from earlier. She looked like a traditional Kiri oinin, mask and all, with long brown hair in a bun. She looked to be the gennins' age. "Where's Junko?" he asked the masked girl.

"He said he had business to take care of." Was Haku's reply to the question.

Kakashi finally decided to bite. "What do you want?"

Zabuza grinned beneath the mask. "You see, we have a bit of a problem. Two weeks ago, Gatou charged us with the task of eliminating the only threat to his monopoly, that old man," here he pointed at Tazuna, who growled at being called old. "We were promised a high pay and gladly agreed. However, yesterday the fifth member of our team discovered that Gatou never intended to pay us, after eavesdropping in on the execution of another nuke-nin, so we came up with a plan. You see, we could just fight our way out, but they greatly outnumber us, and we have other plans. If we pretend you defeated me here, it gives you a chance to train, a week at the most, and work on the bridge. We will then meet at the bridge. We suspect him to bring an army of his untrained thugs who he plans to finish us off once we're tired. If we team up we will be able to easily kill them all. So Gatou's dead, Nami's free, alls good. What do you say?"

Kakashi was still suspicious. "It sounds like a good idea, but what do you get out of it? What are your other plans?"

Zabuza just chuckled. "Perceptive, aren't we? I see that one of your students is a nuke-nin themselves. All I ask is that me and my companions get that same luxury of a hidden village again. You know, a fresh start. It's a pain in the ass running from oinin."

"Naruto is a special case, seeing as his village was destroyed. Konoha doesn't usually accept nuke-nin."

Zabuza refused to relent to Kakashi's logic, and persisted. "Come on, give us a chance. I'm sure we can work something out with the Hokage."

Kakashi was in an inner turmoil and took a few minutes to contemplate this, during which no one noticed Naruto sneak into the bushes with the rabbit. He finally relented. "Fine, we'll see you in a week. You better not be lying Zabuza." And with a simple chuckle from Zabuza, the two left.

"Are you sure we can trust them Sensei?" Sakura asked. She was afraid of them both.

"Probably not, but we'll see. Hey, where's Naruto?" as if on queue, Naruto emerged from the bushes, blood on his shirt and a mutilated rabbit in his hands, still bleeding, wiping his wakizashi on the nearby grass. Apparently he slipped away to go pray. He looked up at all the gazes on him and replied the only way he knew how.

"Why are we just standing here, I'm starving. Which way to your fucking house, old man." Kakashi then just decided that he pissed off some god and that was why he got a fucked up team. With that he told Tazuna to lead the way and off they went.

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When they finally reached his house hours later, Tazuna introduced them to his family, Tsunami, his daughter, and Inari, his grandson, who was more of a moody bastard than Sasuke. Tsunami was both grateful and slightly appalled by the rabbit that Naruto gave her, but cooked it nonetheless.

At the dinner table, they told her of the deal that was made, and while she was glad they were safe and may be getting help, she was still worried. "Do you really think you can trust them?" silence was her answer.

The rest of the meal was eaten in silence, before Kakashi ordered his team to bed and telling them they would take shifts guarding the house. Training would start tomorrow.

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Done. Twists turns and OCs. Winner is announced next chapter, stay tuned.

1. I know that Jashinists have to kill everyone they fight, or pray right afterwards, but for the sake of plot, and reasons that will be explained eventually, they don't actually have to kill as long as they pray with themselves everyday.

What are this mysterious man's plans for Naruto, who is Junko, can they be trusted, what will happen to the Oni Brothers? Well, I only have the main plot and side plots down and I'm just making a lot of this shit up as I go along… okay, less than that, but we'll see where this goes.


	6. Tidal Wave

Spotlights twirl around, giving glimpses of a red curtain in the background, a podium in the center of what can now be called a stage. A small audience is growing restless in their seats when suddenly a voice comes over the intercom.

"Welcome one and all to the first quad-annual reviewer awards! Here's your host… Acolyte of Truth!" The spotlights all converged to a single point, the podium, where a man in a suit can now be seen. The cheering abruptly gives way to silence and confused, almost disappointed looks on the audience's faces.

The man, unperturbed by the lack of enthusiasm, still has a shit-eating grin plastered on his face. "Thank you for the introduction Mike." The man says, giving a thumbs up to a silhouette up in the control booth, which can faintly be seen giving a thumbs up back. The man turns back to the audience. "Without further ado, I will now announce the winner for the reviewer contest. The envelope please."

From the sky, a shining silver envelope falls into the mans hands, who opens it up and reads its contents. The man once again regards the audience.

"It is my pleasure to announce that the winner is…" a drum roll takes place, which is quickly replaced by the song "Eye of the Tiger". "DIGI-MASTER-FAN, for their guess of Rouge and Logan from X-Men! This is wrong, but they still win! Unfortunately, they couldn't be here today to accept this solid gold plaque, but they can contact my in anyway to tell me what their one wish is. That concludes our first quad-annual reviewer awards. Take it away Mike!" The camera slowly pans out, the sounds of the audience cheering and the song still playing begin to fade, as the light dims to pitch black and the doors lock rather loudly, leaving the audience in frightened confusion as the song finally ends.

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The same silhouette from before is seen, somehow being able to escape the stadium the awards ceremony took place in. "Acolyte doesn't own any of Kishimoto's characters, but he does own the OCs appearing in this chapter.

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Chapter six: Tidal Wave

Naruto awoke the next morning to the smell of fish cooking, still slightly tired from his shift of guard duty the previous night. The worst part, Sakura's shift was after his, and he was the one who had to wake her up. His jaw throbbed in phantom pain from the memory of being decked by the seemingly useless kunoichi. He was so shocked that he couldn't even retaliate after being thrown out of the room and being called a pervert. Maybe she did have potential after all?

Naruto's thoughts continued on this path as he did his morning routines, starting with a short prayer followed by a shower. He then walked down the stairs, his thoughts finally reaching their climax. '_Maybe I could convert her? Could she be worthy of Jashin-sama's blessings?' _his thoughts abruptly stopped, followed by him laughing to himself. That would never be possible. Right? (1)

He finally reached the kitchen and looked to see everyone up and sitting at the table, sans him, who just woke up, and Tsunami, who was still cooking, the aroma coming from her position smelling heavenly. He quickly took one of the available seats at the table, sitting next to Kakashi and across from Sasuke.

Less than three minutes later, Tsunami set the food in the middle of the table and took her place next to her father, who was at the head of the table, and Kakashi, and was across from her son, who looked slightly less moody at the sight of his mother's cooking.

After being served his plate, Naruto actually took the time to savoir the woman's cooking this time, and found that it was great, though not as good as Hidan's cooking, who could surprisingly cook in the first place, but still excellent. He wasn't the only one to think so.

"Wow, that is great Tsunami-san." complimented Kakashi, who was amazingly done already, no one being able to see his face.

"Yeah! Have you ever thought of being a chef?" Sakura asked, who was eating more slowly, savoring the taste. Even Sasuke gave his approval with a couple of nods. Apparently, the mood was so bad and everyone was so tired last night, no one took the time to actually taste his or her dinner.

Poor tsunami just blushed at the assault of compliments, muttering a weak "You're all to kind. I'm not that good." Before she continued to eat her own meal.

When everyone was full Kakashi stood up from the table and bowed to Tsunami. "Thank you for the meal, Tsunami- san." The woman just blushed again. Kakashi than rose to his full height and beckoned to his team. "Come on guys, we only have seven days to train, we can't afford to sit idle." With that he walked out the door, followed by his team, who also thanked Tsunami.

As they left, Tazuna was deep in thought, which he voiced aloud. "Can they really do it? Can they really kill Gatou?" And with that, a spark of hope ignited inside the old drunk, who proceeded to pop open another bottle of sake.

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Inside a dark room somewhere, Zabuza could be seen, wrapped in more bandages than usual, lying in a bed, Haku loyally by his side. The door suddenly burst open and in walked Gatou, flanked by two guards, and he looked pissed. He then pointed to Zabuza, his hand shaking in rage.

"YOU!" he yelled. Zabuza, deciding to be the little shit he was on the inside, opened his eyes wide and innocently pointed to himself in a 'Me?' gesture, looking to see if anyone was behind him that he was being mistaken for. The short man just got even more pissed at this, while Zabuza was laughing in his head. "YES YOU!" by now Gatou was foaming at the mouth, Haku had a smirk behind her mask, the guards were shaking, trying to contain their laughter, and a figure could be heard snickering in the shadows, all the while, Zabuza managed to keep up his innocent façade.

"What did I do?" was the only response Gatou got.

He was starting to calm down though, not giving everyone else the pleasure of seeing him so mad. "Oh, it's not what you did, it's what you didn't do. Why isn't the bridge builder dead? I'm not paying you to lay on your ass."

'_Your not paying us at all.'_ Zabuza blankly thought to himself. Seeing that the Gatou had calmed himself, he gave up on trying to antagonize him further. "There was the unforeseen event of Sharingan no Kakashi being there, and with the help of his gennin, I was overwhelmed." was his practiced and solemn reply.

Gatou, it seemed, would have none of that. "Bullshit! What about the other two?"

"Haku was my escape tool just incase something like this happened." The masked girl nodded. "Junko though…"

At this point, a figure emerged from the shadows. He was 5'8, and appeared to be around seventeen, with auburn hair that reached his shoulders, wearing a simple pair of pants and a shirt with a collar covering his mouth and baggy sleeves, along with a pair of sunglasses. A small glint could be seen coming from inside his collar, so it was assumed that his hitai-ate was tied around his neck, its symbol unseen.

He spoke, in a bored voice that portrayed confidence, "I had things to do. Don't worry about it. After Zabuza is healed up, we'll try again."

Gatou didn't like this answer and foolishly charged at the mysterious Junko, who easily caught the mans punch and sent his own, pulled punch, to the short man's stomach, leaving him out of breath and causing him to crumple over.

The guards started to advance, but were quickly stopped by the cold feel of ice needles at their necks, and an even colder voice whispering in their ears. "Stay out of this." Haku smiled as the guards backed down.

Gatou then got back up, still gasping for air, and ordered a tactical retreat. Junko then turned to his partners. "Heh, this is gonna be easy." However, on the inside he thought something else. _' Hmm. If what Zabuza says about the gennin is true, this may call for a change of plans.' _And with that, Junko left whilst saying he would see the others later, Zabuza and Haku chalking this behavior up as normal.

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Kakashi and team 7 were in the woods that surrounded Tazuna's home. He turned to his students with what seemed to be a smile on his face, judging by the way his eye turned up. "Okay team. Today we will be climbing trees." The man was way to joyful for announcing such a simple task, and before Sakura could say this, Kakashi demonstrated this by climbing the tree… with no hands. When he reached a branch, he walked on its underside so that he was vertical to the ground, and then flipped off the tree, landing in front of his students who sported mixed reactions

Sasuke was intrigued, but didn't see how this would really help him. Sakura was wondering how that was even physically possible. Naruto was just shocked. These guys had been a team for how long and were only learning such a basic exercise just now? What the fuck had they been doing before he showed up?

Now, it may not have seemed like it, but Hidan knew the importance of controlling one's chakra, and had beaten this ideal into Naruto for the first couple of months he knew him. As such, he had pretty good control over his Bijuu enhanced reserves. Not great but passable.

Naruto just tuned out the man as he explained about balance between the physical and mental energies that formed the spiritual one and walked over to a nearby lake, and just like ninja and a prophet before him, walked on its surface. (2) Now if only ninja could turn water into wine, then Hidan would be happy.

The others were shocked, though Kakashi's own passed before the other's. "Hmm. It would appear someone already has good control over their chakra. Naruto, please come with me. You two practice. Mark your progress with these." He threw two kunai at Sasuke and Sakura, which landed at their feet, and beckoned Naruto deeper into the woods, leaving a clone in his place.

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In an underground base located inside Konoha, Danzou sat in his personal chamber contemplating on recent happenings that could interfere with his plans. A shadowed figure then appeared behind him.

The bandaged man regarded him without turning around. "Taiki, if you would contact our little friend in wave, it would appear as if Gatou has outlived his usefulness. And tell him to pay my old student a visit, would you? We need to see exactly where loyalties lie."

"Hai, Danzou-sama." And with that Taiki left, unable to hear his leader's thoughts. _'For all of you.'_

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When Kakashi felt that they were far enough away, he rounded on Naruto. "I need to ask you a few questions, Naruto."

Naruto had been expecting this, but decided that he would get what he could out of it. "Fine, but on one condition." He took Kakashi's silence as a sign to continue. "Teach me that bunshin jutsu you used. I could tell that it was solid, and not like the elemental variations"

Wanting to get this over with, Kakashi agreed. " Fine. First question. Who is this Jashin-sama?"

"He is the one true god that has been failed by nearly everyone on this and other plains of existence."

Kakashi accepted this answer and moved on. "Why did you let yourself be attacked by the enemy yesterday? You know you could have been killed, right?"

Naruto decided to tell the truth, just not all of it. "Jashin-sama says that one must understand pain before one can inflict it. Besides, the Kyuubi would have prevented me from dieing."

"You know of the kitsune?" Kakashi was now slightly worried. Did the Bijuu have any sort of control over his student?

"Yeah, and don't worry, the seal keeps it in check." Naruto recited what the kitsune told him, putting Kakashi's mind at ease. "Any other questions?"

Kakashi thought for a bit. "No, I think that's it." He then got into teaching mode. "Okay. The kage bunshin is an A-class jutsu that requires high levels of chakra and control to be used effectively. Now, the interesting thing is that…" and so Kakashi explained the kage bunshin and all its aspects.

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Half an hour later, the whole field was full of Naruto's bunshins and to say that Kakashi was surprised was an understatement. Shaking himself of his stupor, he reminded Naruto of the backlash of dispelling them. When that was over with, they made their way back to the other two.

It would appear as if Sakura had moved on to water walking and was failing miserably due to her lack of chakra, while Sasuke only managed to get halfway up the tree. Kakashi then said that he had to go make sure Tazuna was okay, and told them that Naruto was in charge.

Sasuke growled at this. How could he be behind everyone? Sure, Sakura had so little chakra that it was a no-brainer to control, but this Naruto guy? He already liked him better than Sakura, but he could feel chakra rolling off him, how did he have so much control? He needed that power. He needed it to make sure that his family rested in peace. He needed to make Itachi pay.

But, he doubted that this guy would just give him what he wanted, and even his arrogance didn't make him foolish enough to challenge this guy who he knew almost nothing about. He would need to take a different approach.

Swallowing his pride, which took three attempts considering he had so much, he walked over to the blonde. Then, he took the plunge. "Could you help me?"

The jashinist was shocked when he turned around to see who bothered him. An Uchiha was asking someone for help. And not just any Uchiha, but Sasuke, who he was beginning to think was mute since he hadn't heard him talk before. Naruto was so shocked that by the end of the day, Sasuke was halfway done with water walking, while Sakura was passed out on the shore, totally spent, but a quarter of the way done. It seemed that the two would get along after all. (3)

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It was almost dawn when Taiki found his target. As he approached it, a cold, rough voice called out, "What do you have to report?"

Taiki took a deep breath. He hated being around this man, but this was also the man that saved his life, and it was only because he knew that he was looking for him, and thus let himself, that Taiki even found him.

Taking another deep breath, Taiki prepared himself. "Danzou-sama wants you to find out where Uzumaki-san's loyalties lie, but… I think he may expect something… from both of us."

The man apparently had his back turned the whole time this exchange was taking place, as when he turned around it was obvious where he was as now you could see two dark orange rings in the darkness and the dull glow of a slowly burning cigarette, though Taiki knew that the man could still go unnoticed from even the most alert jounin dispite these circumstances.

"Hmm. It would seem that even when Danzou is making things better for his own plans, he also gives me more options." The man closed his eyes as his smoke went out, virtually disappearing. Then, the voice was behind Taiki, as well as the cold presence. "It would seem as if I'm going to Konoha." _'As an added bonus, I may be able to turn the others against each other. Let's see.'_ The cold presence disappeared into the darkness once again, leaving these parting words to Taiki, "Please inform Danzou-san of my impending arrival. I need to go see the jinchuuriki."

Taiki gave a deep bow and then left as the man lit another cigarette and walked away, intent to get as much information as he could.

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It was once again dinner at Tazuna's house, and both new gennin were making progress. Sasuke had mastered water walking and was now just doing physical training with Naruto, during which Naruto almost killed him and he had unlocked his Sharingan in his desperation not to die. Sakura, too, had mastered the exercise, and was now being trained by a clone to not be completely useless and to see if they could tap into her strength again. There was little improvement.

Kakashi had mixed feelings at the news of the training. On one hand, he had more spare time to read or "guard Tazuna". On the other hand, he felt like he was failing in his duty as a sensei and was so depressed that he was actually guarding the old drunk. He made the decision that he would actually teach when the mission was over.

In two days, they would all go to the bridge and see if Zabuza would hold true to his word. As such this was the last day they had to train, so they worked their asses off. As everyone sat eating dinner, Inari finally had enough.

"I don't get it. Why do you try so hard?!? DON'T YOU KNOW THAT YOU'LL JUST DIE!?!" He started quiet, his voice steadily growing louder and his out burst stopped all eating and other conversation. Tsunami was surprised by his out burst, and wouldn't stand for it.

"Inari! Don't say such…" She was cut off.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP MOM! THEY DON'T KNOW ANYTHING!" Both Tsunami and Tazuna were shocked into silence.

Naruto finally had enough. "I hate people like you. So self-centered. Your kind is so blind that they can't see what's right in front of their faces. The solution to the problem. Your kind lacks hope and determination, and as such, feel that they can't let other people have it, saying shit like their gonna die. That shit makes me sick. Fuckin' man up and grow a pair, pussy." And with that, Naruto left the shocked silent house, hell-bent on destroying a good five acres of woodland and its inhabitants.

Kakashi took it upon himself to apologize. "I'm sorry about that, but what Naruto said has a ring of truth." At this point, Inari was flat out crying, but before he could leave, Kakashi started again. "You see, Naruto had a hard life growing up and…" here Kakashi paused, as he and his students relized what he was saying.

"Kakashi-sensei, Naruto is from another village. How would you know what his life was like?" Sakura just had to make this hard on him, didn't she?

Aww, fuck it. They probably would have found out eventually. Kakashi just sighed as everyone gave him a questioning look, even Inari stopped crying to listen. He just sighed again and thought, _'Well, might as well start from the beginning.'_ "Sakura, Sasuke, may I ask, what are your opinions of Naruto?"

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And I'm stopping there. Next chapter wraps up the wave ark. And get your wish into me DMF.

(1). I actually did entertain this idea for a little bit, but ultimately decided against it.

(2). Sorry for the Jesus reference, couldn't help myself. No more will be made.

(3). Worry not. Naruto will eventually kick Sasuke's ass.

And thus ends my longest chapter yet. Bye-bye. On a side note, I started a side project. Check it out if you're interested.


	7. Ghost of the Mist

Hello there readers. The reason I was able to update so fast comes in two parts. I was able to really think this through while waiting to post the sixth chapter, and the ninth and tenth graders get Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday off while seventh, eighth and eleventh graders are doing NECAPs and the seniors get stuck with community service. The point is, it sucks to be them for the next three days, which I get off. Also, some of you may have noticed that I changed this to a mystery fic. Why, some may ask. Well, one, to single it out even more, and, two, things will be happening which you may call a conspiracy. Note, this will be my longest chapter yet. Now, lets see where we left off, shall we?

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Disclaimer: I've seen enough crime dramas to know what I'm doing in the courtroom, so just try to come and get me bitches.

Hmm, not much of a disclaimer.

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Chapter 7: Ghost in the Mist

The two were confused by the question. 'What are your opinions of Naruto?' What kind of question was that? What did it have to do with anything? Never the less, Sasuke took initiative.

"Naruto… he's a hard ass, that's for sure, but… I believe that he's a good guy and a good mentor, unlike some people." Kakashi winced at the stab at his character, but kept silent. "I would probably trust him with my life, despite knowing him for only a week." Now both Sakura and Kakashi were shocked, but Kakashi recovered and placed a hidden smile under his mask. Naruto was a good influence. Now, he turned to Sakura.

The pink haired girl was shocked at Sasuke's declaration of trusting the boy, but as she thought back on it, she couldn't help but find herself agreeing. "Everything Sasuke said was true, he may be a bit rough around the edges, but deep down, I think he's a good person."

Kakashi just smiled more, seeing the impact the boy had on the team as a whole, even if he was still cautious about his mental state. That smile dropped as he thought about how he was supposed to explain this to these people. Sure, Naruto was pretty forthcoming about the Kyuubi, but was it really his place to tell others? He could sense the anticipation growing, so he took a deep breath and steeled himself.

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Naruto was pissed. Only three things made him this pissed. Drunks were one, but he admitted some he could stand. Rapists were another. Sure, he and other Jashinists were all about inflicting pain on others, but not through the reproductive means. This was one of the first things Hidan taught him about Jashinism. The third were whiny, arrogant brats who thought they knew everything about something. Inari was the last one. That little shit had a family, why should he be crying?

He finally found a clearing and grinned when he saw a deer in it. It was oblivious to his presence until it felt something stab into its leg. It gave a shrill yelp as it stumbled to the ground and turned its head to see the attacker. Blood dripped from Naruto's wakizashi as he licked the serrated blade, uncaring as he cut his own tongue as he swallowed the deer's blood.

He then drew the pentagram in the dirt and allowed his skin to change colour, as he brought his blade up and stabbed himself in the chest area a few times. Sure, Naruto may not know much about animal physiology, but he knew animals generally had the same organs in the same regions of there body.

Naruto sighed in content as he felt the ecstasy of his post-sacrifice prayer wear off, and gently closed his eyes, wakizashi still in his abdominal area. No one would find him here, and he would return in the morning. That in mind, he fell asleep in his bloody clothes and the cooling deer carcass a few feet away in his prayer circle.

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In the trees, orange eyes scrunched in frustration, before returning to their calm gaze. '_So much like Hidan. Too much if I am to complete my mission. Perhaps I will be able to kill two birds with one stone on this one. I should contact Haku right away.'_ And with that, the mysterious man lit his cigarette and receded into darkness with parting thoughts as he staved off a headache. _'I need to remember to smoke more at night. It gets cold at night.'_

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At the dinner table, Kakashi finally spoke, clearing all anticipation. "You see, the thing you don't know about Naruto is that he is not originally from Yugakure. He is in fact, from Konoha." Here, the other two members of team 7 were thrown through a loop. How could Naruto be from Konoha? How had they never met him? Tazuna's family didn't really understand this.

"So? He moved, it's not that big of a deal. What I want to know is how you know of his childhood." This came from Tazuna, who didn't really care where the kid was from. Sakura supplied an answer.

"You see, Tazuna-san, it is very rare for people to leave a hidden village, especially one of the great five. Usually only merchants leave the village, but that's part of their route. A regular family doesn't leave."

Kakashi coughed into his fist to regain everyone's attention. "If you want me to tell the story, stop interrupting. Now, for reasons I will not disclose, I will say that Naruto was held with much animosity within the villagers' eyes. For this reason, he was usually in seclusion, training. He didn't have parents to protect him. One day, when he was four, he was attacked by a mob. That mob would have killed him had me and my ANBU squad not shown up. In the end, the Hokage decided to send him away for his own safety. That's all there is too it about why he acted the way he did, and I still don't know why he returned to Konoha, but try to not let this change your opinions of him."

"But what about Naruto, sensei? Shouldn't we go look for him?" Asked Sakura, actually worried for the boy.

"I think it would be for the best if we let him be for now, he seemed pretty mad. Now go to bed, I'll keep watch tonight."

And so everyone went to bed, different thoughts going through their heads as they drifted off.

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Haku was wondering through the woods in search of the blonde haired boy. She was told to find him and befriend him. So, she made an excuse about going to pick herbs to make a healing salve, just in case.

But, as she walked, she had to think, who was this person who could make her betray her precious person? Why did she believe what he said? Then again, if he told the truth, than there was hope, he could be-no, there was no question about it. He had proven who he was and what he was capable of. She would listen to him.

Her thought process was stopped when the strong scent of blood hit her, coming from her left. She quickly headed in that direction and was sickened by what she saw. A deer was lying with multiple stab wounds in it, the blood pooling around it, cold. She backed away when her foot stepped in something, cool and sticky.

She shakily turned her head, and was horrified. Sure, she killed, but it was always clean, and even Zabuza had a limit when it came to mutilation. Behind her was the body of Naruto, multiple stab wounds in his chest, his wakizashi stabbed into his abdomen where most of the blood originated from, obscuring his prayer symbol.

Haku ran over to the boy and felt for a pulse, just in case. She let out a sigh of relief when she felt the steady, rhythmic thumping of his heart through his veins. However, he was still unconscious and in danger, so she knelt down and proceeded to give him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, uncaring that she was dirtying her kimono.

Naruto groggily opened his eyes, feeling his lips tingling. When his vision finally cleared, what he saw shocked him. Over his body was a pretty girl in a pink kimono and dark brown hair, pressing her lips to his. Her soft, smooth, pink lips that held a hint of wild strawberries.

He quickly shot up in shock, taking a header into Haku, a blush on his face. This was understandable as this was the most intimate he had ever been, but still, he nearly knocked the girl unconscious.

Speaking of Haku, she had just regained her balance and saw Naruto now sitting up, gasping for air. She did admit, he was kind of cute with that blush on his whisker-marked cheeks. She shook her head, a blush now on her cheeks. She then remembered why she was there, and, more importantly, what she saw. She quickly got back over to him, a concerned look in her eyes.

Naruto finally put his thoughts together and saw the girl now in front of him, a concerned look in her deep, caramel brown eyes. He faintly heard her ask if he was all right. His brow furrowed at this question, wondering what she meant, until he saw the deer behind her and felt a prickling in his chest and stomach. That's when he remembered what happened last night.

Haku just watched as this boy removed his serrated weapon from himself and used his shirt to stem the bleeding. She tried her question again. "Are you alright?"

Naruto just nodded his head and said, "I'm fine." He could feel the Kyuubi healing him.

"Do you know who did this to you?" Haku asked, trying to help this boy in anyway she could, barly noticing a dull orange glow originating from his wounds and knitting them closed. She didn't know much about healing chakra, but wasn't it supposed to be green?

Naruto nodded his head again as he wiped his blade on the grass. "Your looking at him." He then stood up and headed to the river to clean his shirt.

The girl deftly followed, confused over his statement, then having her eyes widen in shock. "Why would you do that to yourself?"

They finally reached the flowing water, as Naruto removed his upper clothing and proceeded to wash it, his pendant now clearly visible in the early morning sun. "My religion dictates it. Now, who are you?"

Haku was surprised someone would go so far for the sake of religion, and was embarrassed both by the fact that she forgot to introduce herself and that the boy was showing his body to her. "Um… I'm Haku."

"Oh yeah. Your Zabuza's partner. Nice to meet you, I'm Naruto." He turned around and stuck his hand out in greeting.

Haku grasped his hand and shook. "Nice to formally meet you Naruto-kun."

The blond haired boy was confused. "-Kun?" he then blushed, remembering how they met this morning.

Seeing the blush, she relized what he must have been thinking. "Oh! Sorry about this morning, I was trying to resuscitate you." She then noticed the wound was completely gone. "Hey, what kind of chakra did you use back there to heal your injury? It didn't look like the healing chakra I've read about."

Naruto didn't know why he was telling this person all this, he barly knew her, but he felt as if he couldn't lie to her. "You know of the Kyuubi, right?" seeing a nod, he continued. "Well, when I was born, it was sealed into me. It treats all my wounds. Of course, I was an outcast until I was four and a mob attacked me. Because of previous training I survived until some ANBU saved me. I was then sent to the now destroyed Yu, and eventually returned to Konoha to continue being a shinobi. Of course I spent a few years traveling in between."

Haku was in tears at how this boy explained such a tragic life, obviously uncaring about life. She tackled the boy in a hug, forgetting that they were on a riverbank, as he was finishing dressing, both of them falling in.

They surfaced seconds later, Haku still on Naruto as they got to shore, both soaked. The girl just gave a slight chuckle. "Sorry, forgot where we were. But I can relate to your life." She proceeded to tell him the story of her family and being found by Zabuza. Naruto listened and had to admit, for some reason he felt sorry for her. What was going on?

In the end, they had to leave, saying they would see each other tomorrow, but as Naruto left towards Tazuna's house, he couldn't help but wonder how that girl made him feel… human, and how she actually cared. What would he do for her?

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All was quiet in a dark cave in an undisclosed location, which appeared to have no entrance or exit. Suddenly, all at once nine lights in the shape of people flickered to life in the form of holographic projections.

A ring-eyed projection spoke. "How are our finances going, Kakuzu?"

A strange, green-eyed projection spoke. "Great. I believe we are almost ready to move onto phase two."

The first hologram nodded. "In that case, I will now assign Bijuu. Keep in mind that you will not actively hunt them for a few years. Sasori," a sort man nodded. "You will have the Gobi."

"Hai, Leader-sama."

"Kisame," a rather tall man grinned, showing pointed teeth. "The Ichibi is yours."

The man frowned, but let out a reluctant "Hai, Leader-sama" non the less.

"Hidan," the violet-eyed man nodded. "Nibi."

"Fuck!" was heard from the man.

"Konjyoyaki," an orange-eyed man with a haze around him nodded. "You get the Kyuubi.

"Hai, Leader-sama." Was heard in a scratchy voice.

"The rest of you will be assigned Bijuu when it becomes clear where they are and what the host is capable of. Now, if there is nothing else, dis-" he was cut off by a figure with purple eyes.

"Wait, I want to know something. One, why do only certain people have partners, and, two, why does the new guy get the Kyuubi?" The other man, Kisame, seemed to agree with his latter statement, glaring at the 'new guy'.

The ring-eyed man sighed. "We've been over this Hidan. People have partners because their skills compliment each other. Those without partners have no one to compliment them. As for why Konjyoyaki gets the Kyuubi, his skills are best suited for the job. These decisions are subject to change as more is found out about them. Now, if there are no more interruptions, dismissed."

And so most of the figures flickered away, leaving only three; Leader, a yellow-eyed figure with a strange protrusion around his head, and a feminine figure. The yellow-eyed one spoke. "What do you wish, Pein-sama?"

The leader, now known as Pein, spoke. "Keep an eye on Hidan, Zetsu. I don't trust him."

With a "Hai." Zetsu vanished.

The feminine figure then spoke. "Can you really trust anyone, Nagato?"

The man turned to her. "I told you, Konan, call me Pein when like this. And you're probably the only one I can trust right now."

And then, the two vanished.

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When Naruto got back to the house, breakfast was just winding down, and things seemed different. Sakura and Sasuke looked in deep thought. Tsunami was looking at him funny and Tazuna wasn't drinking. Hell, even Inari wasn't as moody. Kakashi seemed to be the only normal one as he gave a nod to him, immersed in his pornography.

He joined the quiet scene and ate. Just as he finished, Inari came up to him. After this morning, Naruto was a little less bitter and could actually stand the kid. Not much, but enough. "What do you want?"

"I wanted to say sorry." Now, Naruto thought he was in the twilight zone or had lost too much blood and was in a coma. Someone slipping LSD into his food was also an option, since a hallucinogenic would also mess with the Kyuubi. What the fuck was going on this morning? He almost didn't catch the rest. "It's just that, with someone opposing Gatou, I'm reminded of someone important to me, and I don't want more people to die." Now Inari was crying.

"Uh, it's okay. But I don't think that this person would want to see you crying. He would want you to be brave." Naruto awkwardly patted the boy on the back.

"Thank you." Was all the boy said, before he ran to his room. The rest of the day was spent lazing around and, before they knew it, it was night. Instead of keeping watch, they decided to set traps. They would need all their energy tomarrow, after all.

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It was finally the day where team 7 would see if Zabuza would live up to his word. They left the house at dawn and removed the traps, just in case the family had to leave for something. When they got to the bridge, they saw Zabuza already there along with Haku, in her oinin garb, and a mysterious auburn haired boy with a high collar and sunglasses, even with the natural fog there.

As they approached, Zabuza waved over to them. "Seems you've accepted, Kakashi."

"For now. I still don't trust you Zabuza, know that. But if you prove your worth, I will put in a good word for you to the Hokage. Now, who's your friend?" the last part was aimed at the seventeen-year-old.

It appeared he decided it was better to introduce himself. "Forgive me for not being at our little… meeting earlier. I am known as Junko." Here, he gave a slight bow.

"Heh, that's a chicks name." It seems Junko ignored this jab, putting Naruto a little out of it.

The rest of the time was spent in silence after they finished introducing themselves, with Naruto and Haku taking occasional glances at each other. It was not twenty minutes later when Gatou showed up, alone.

"Heh, just as I expected, you never were planning on killing the old man, were you?"

"Gatou, where are your men, what's going on here?!?" to say Zabuza was surprised was an understatement. His partners seemed surprised as well'

"Fool! I was testing you. You see, I've had a shinobi friend in Nami for a while now, and, when you showed up, he convinced me you would end up backstabbing me. So, assuming you were keeping me under surveillance, we put on a little act. He has been with you this whole time, too, and has constantly kept me in the loop." The short man stopped here to laugh a bit.

Zabuza just growled, and lifted Junko into the air. "YOU PIECE OF SHIT! I KNEW I SHOULDN'T HAVE TRUSTED YOU!" he then threw about ten feet where he tumbled and hit the ground. Hard.

Gatou laughed more. "Not him, you dumbass. He's currently with my other men."

Kakashi, however, relized something "Wait, where are your men?"

"Why, at the dear Tazuna's house, of course, retrieving his family. They should be here any second." Then, through the fog, people could be seen. At the front were Tsunami and Tazuna, tied up and with thugs holding swords to them. "My, perfect timing. Now, lets see the conductor of this whole plot.

From the fog came a man. He was rather tall, at 6'4, with short cut dark-brown hair and a goatee. He was wearing a white open trench coat that covered his hands, with a mesh top underneath, and regular black shinobi pants, a black Kiri hitai-ate on his forehead. He was smoking a cigarette, and his most distinguishing feature was his dark orange eyes, along with the small scar under his left one.

Both Zabuza and Haku tensed up at seeing him, thinking '_Him?!? What's he doing here?!?' _for Haku, though, it went a little deeper. _'No. I knew I shouldn't have trusted him. But why? WHY??!? He knows who I am, doesn't he? Did he lie somehow?' _The poor girl was almost in tears.

Kakashi was also tensed, but for a different reason all together, for his highly tuned olfactory senses picked something up. _'That smell. What is it?'_ then, the man grasped his cigarette, revealing his hands clad in fingerless gloves, and flicked it towards the thugs, who looked scared. Kakashi then relized what the smell was. _'GASOLINE!'_

All at once, the mob caught fire, sans for Gatou, Tazuna, Tsunami and the man, just as Inari and his own mob arrived, armed to the teeth to fight them. Everyone cringed as the men screamed in agony, and in minutes there was nothing left bit charred remains. Then Gatou turned to the emotionless man, uncaring for what he did or was about to do.

"W-w-w-what did you j-j-just d-do?!?" the short man was shivering and had probably soiled himself.

The man turned his cold, unblinking gaze to him, and said, in a nonchalant way, "Finishing a mission."

No one noticed the ice chukato that formed in the mans long sleeves, and he moved so quick, the next thing people knew was that it was buried in the tyrants chest, mixing with blood as Gatou grasped for it, falling to the ground. The man just stomped on his creation, causing it to shatter, and shards of it to go into different regions of Gatou's chest, killing him.

The man then started to walk over to the group, Gatou's blood staining his coat, undeterred by the fact that everyone was ready to fight as he approached. During the time he was killing Gatou, Kakashi had retrieved Inari's mother and grandfather who had quick ran over to their sides. Zabuza finally got over his shock and took the initiative to confront the man.

"Why are you here?" his voice may have sounded calm, but his growling told everyone he was anything but. The man just quirked his head to the side.

"Oh, didn't Haku-chan tell you?" he asked in a fake questioning tone. Everyone rounded on the masked female.

Zabuza was the most surprised. "Haku! Don't you know who this man is?!? How could you not tell me he was here?!?" he had grabbed her shoulders by now and was shaking her.

It was Naruto who stopped him. "Hey, calm down! It's not her fault. Now, who is he Chan-chan?" if people noticed his slip, they didn't mention it.

In a quiet voice, she simply said, "He's my uncle."

Zabuza's eyes just went wide and his face pale, sweat beading his brow. "W-w-what d-d-d-did y-you s-s-say?" he was stuttering now.

He then felt a cold voice in his ear. "It's true. Haku-chan is my niece." Zabuza jumped in the air and quickly turned, bringing his zanbatou down, only for it to meet another chukato made of ice. The goateed man however, was forced to jump back from the other man's immense strength.

He held up his hand and let his blade disintegrate. "Relax, I'm not here to fight you, Zabuza." He stepped to the side as Junko, feeling better from the attack Zabuza got on him, sent a left cross at him, followed by a roundhouse. Junko jumped away and flipped off his hands to get more distance. He then charged the man with a palm strike, which was caught. The man then kicked Junko into Zabuza, sending both to the ground. He then cracked his neck as his head then turned, eyes locking onto Naruto. "That boy, however, is not so luck. My mission entails me to fight him. So…" here, he cut off as he made a b-line for the boy at an impressive speed, no weapon in sight.

He was there in under a second and punched the unexpecting boy in the face, sending him skidding across the pavement of the bridge. Within seconds he was right next to the downed boy and had picked him by the throat. "Come on, is that the best you've got?" he just barly moved his head in time so that it wouldn't get cut off by a wakizashi. His cigarette, however, was not as lucky. The man threw him back to the group and jumped back himself, pulling out a lighter and getting another smoke, taking a deep breath. "You really shouldn't do that if you know what's best for you." He then turned around and started back towards the mist, coat blowing behind him as he called over his shoulder, "You disappoint me, Uzumaki. I hope you to be better the next time we meet, if not for your sake, then for Hidan's. Until then." He then disappeared without a trace and, try as he might, Kakashi couldn't find a chakra signal. Come to think of it, he could barly feel one the whole fight.

Naruto just sat there, stunned and wondering what just happened with a few questions on his mind while Haku ran over to see the extent of any injuries. Kakashi just rounded on Zabuza. "Who was that?"

The man just took a deep breath. "It's always the ones you don't know who are the most dangerous. Have you ever wondered why the coup failed, Kakashi?" he didn't give the man a chance to answer. "It's because we were betrayed. That man you just saw, he was our seventh member. The night of the coup, the other four were running distraction as one went after the daimyo. Me and him were in charge of the assassination. However, he is only loyal to the one who gets to him first, no matter what unless a previous mission calls for betrayal or he is betrayed. The Mizukage got to him first, and made him into a sleeper agent. We fought. Although he wasn't the strongest, he defeated me." Zabuza now had tears welling in his eyes and his head facing the ground, unusual for the man. "You don't understand Kakashi, we were a brotherhood, and one of our own forced us to disband."

Kakashi did understand loss though and, even if it wasn't betrayal, it was close. He put a comforting hand on the man's shoulder, and spoke in a calm tone. "Who was he Zabuza? What is his name?"

Zabuza turned back to him, everyone now listening. He took a deep breath and spoke. "His name is Konjyoyaki, the Yuurei no Kiri."

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The next day, team 7 and the new Konoha shinobi left for the village from the Super Bridge that Tazuna Built, named so after much debate from the old man who was surprisingly persuasive and coherent when drunk, in a slightly better mood than yester day, though they all still had questions on there minds.

They reached the gate and checked in, receiving an ANBU escort due to their traveling companions, and headed to the Hokage's office.

In the customs booth, one officer turned to the other and simply said, "You owe me twenty dollars. Fork it over." The other just grumbled a fished around in his pocket for a few seconds before placing a few bills in his friends awaiting hand.

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And that's that. Plot twists, romance and a few other goodies, all in… wait that took eleven fucking pages?!?

Yuurei no Kiri: Ghost of the Mist

Well, I think that covers everything. By my estimations, the Chunin Exams start in two chapters. See ya in about two weeks.


	8. Enemies

Hey there. Some people commented on the fact that the bridge wasn't named after Naruto. The reason is I just don't think he influenced the people enough to have a bridge named after him. Also, some people have been censoring themselves for some reason. Let me make this clear, I don't give a fuck what you say, just don't be whiney bitches. And don't comment on your concern of reviews for this story. Hell, I already got more than I expected, and none were flames, surprisingly. Okay, I think that's about it. Oh yeah, I don't believe there will be a lemon in this story, but the sequel probably will have one. In fact, the reason I update so fast is so that I can move onto the sequel. Anyway, let me delay you no longer than necessary.

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Disclaimer: A courtroom is packed and full of people speaking in hushed whispers. A gavel is slammed effective silencing everything. The judge turns to the jury. "How does the jury find the defendant?"

A chubby man with grey hair and glasses stands up. "We of the jury find the defendant guilty of all six-hundred-eighty-seven counts of pissing off numerous attorneys at law with his annoying disclaimers."

"Aww, fuck you, Mike." A man, the defendant said. The judge slams his gavel.

"Silence. And I would like to warn you to watch your mouth, Mr. Acolyte. I hereby order you to fork over any assets you have to the state of Vermont within the next week. Court is dismissed."

Outside the courthouse, camera crews gather around Mr. Acolyte. "Do you have anything to say about the verdict?"

He clears his throat. "As you can see, there is no use in suing me anymore, but I'll say it anyway. I don't own Naruto."

A lawyer passing by hears this and gives him a summons. "That phrase is trademark patented. I'll see you in court, Jew-fro."

Mr. Acolyte takes offense to the jab at his hairstyle. "Hey, Jew-fro is trademark patented too!" no one seems to hear him. "Shit."

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Chapter Eight: Enemy on the Home Front

The doors were opened by the ANBU escorting them as Sarutobi looked up from his considerably smaller than usual pile of paperwork, seeing Team 7 and three other individuals. Kakashi approached. "Hokage-sama, these individuals wish to join our ranks as shinobi of Konoha. What do you say?"

The Hokage looked like he was about to tear up and quickly opened his desk drawer, taking out three headbands and tossing them to the missing-nins.

"Just tell me some personal information and we'll get you set up right away. Please tell me your name and previous rank, along with your previous village affiliation and any achievements relating to your career." Said Sarutobi, taking out some parchment and a pen.

Zabuza went first. "Momochi Zabuza, former jounin and member of the Seven Swordsmen of Kiri." The old man looked unfazed as he wrote this information down.

"Haku, no known last name. I hail from Kiri but was never officially a shinobi. I am one of the last of the Hyoton bloodline." Here Sarutobi paused a bit, but nodded his head as a sign to continue.

"Junko, former chunin of Ame. Specializations in taijutsu and interrogation as well as spy craft."

Sarutobi finished writing this down and looked up. "Okay, you two can start probation right away." Zabuza and Junko slumped a bit. "Haku, however, will be assigned to Team 7 to oversee her training, seeing as she never was a shinobi. I do find this quite a coincidence, though."

"What do you mean?" asked Kakashi. The others looked interested as well.

"You see, three days ago, another nuke-nin from Kiri also joined our forces. He also had an ice bloodline, a former membership in the swordsmen, and was well versed in counter-intelligence operations and close-quarters combat. Hell, the guy works like clockwork." During the description, everyone was tensing up and sweating lightly. This guy sounded familiar. They almost didn't here the rest of what the Hokage had to say. "In fact, he should enter the door in 3…2…now."

Everyone spun around, drawing some form of weapon to defend themselves, as the door opened on Sarutobi's mark. Low and behold, there on the other side was the smoking speed demon they met on the bridge. He seemed unfazed by all the sharp and pointy implements of pain pointed at his head and vital organs, as their wielders seemed oblivious to the ANBU ready to kill them at the order. Konjyoyaki just pushed the serrated blade from his face aside and stared Naruto down, then let out a breath of smoke. "Relax, the contract was terminated. I no longer pose a threat to you." Only the inner group could hear this. They didn't let their guard down at all, however.

Sarutobi finally had enough. "Everyone, stand down!" the ANBU obeyed immediately, followed reluctantly by everyone else. "Kakashi, is there a reason you attacked a comrade?"

Zabuza scoffed. "He is no longer a comrade of mine." No one seemed to be listening to him however, only making him more pissed off.

"You see, Hokage-sama, two days ago, this man was at the bridge in Nami. He proceeded to take down Gatou's men, followed by the tyrant himself. He then turned to us and started attacking Naruto, and left after his cigarette was put out. He is an enemy." By the end of Kakashi's report, Sarutobi looked confused.

"One, what does Gatou have to do with any of this, and two, I don't see how that's possible. Konjyoyaki-san has been here for the past three days and has been under the constant surveillance of the ANBU. It's not that I don't believe you Kakashi, I just don't see how this all adds up." The group just looked at the floor, wondering what was going on. "Now, Team 7, you're dismissed. I expect a full mission report by the end of tomorrow, Kakashi."

"Hai." And with a bow from all five, they left.

"As for you three," Sarutobi turned to Junko, Zabuza and Konjyoyaki with a smile on his face. "Finish this paperwork, I'm gonna take a nap." And so, the three just sweat-dropped as the old man fell asleep at his desk and got to work, uncaring that they were now working together.

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At the training ground, Kakashi stood in front of his now four students. Sure, he was planning on training them anyways, but some unseen force just had to make his life more difficult, didn't it? Sighing, he resigned himself to his fate. "It has come to my attention that I may have been lacking in your training."

"Really? We haven't noticed." Kakashi ignored the comment from Sakura and continued his spiel.

"As you may or may not know, the Chunin Exams are in three weeks time. Because of this, you all will be experiencing new levels of pain with specific training regimes I have designed for you specifically. However, due to the newest addition to the team, it will not start until tomarrow, seeing as I need to confer with Zabuza about what Haku knows. Consider yourselves lucky. But, I would also like to see where you all stand as a team. So we will be doing a teamwork building exercise." And with that, he pulled out four bells. "I know Sasuke and Sakura know the meaning of these bells, but, allow me to reiterate. You will all work as a team to retrieve these bells. If you are able to do so in two hours, I will give you the rest of the day off. If you fail to get all the bells, well, I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise." At the last comment, he gave an eye smile that sent a chill up everyone's spine.

Sakura and Sasuke were wondering what had happened to their old sensei, and Haku was wondering what she had gotten herself into. Naruto just gave a sick grin to reciprocate the smile the silver haired man was giving off. He would enjoy this, though doubted this man could even come close to matching the hell Hidan had put him through. He was surprised when the man just went up in smoke, but everyone turned to meet the voice behind them.

There were now about ten Kakashi, each one holding bells. All at once, they said, "Go!" the darted into the woods around them, each in a different direction. Everyone groaned, but reluctantly gave chase, following where they saw a majority of them vanish to.

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All was quiet in the woods as a man waited. His contact would be here any moment now. Suddenly, he felt a presence and turned to meet someone he wasn't expecting. "Hidan? What are you doing here?"

From the bushes emerged the purple-eyed man, a bored look on his face. "I'm here to see how he's doing."

"Hn." Was the only response he got. It was quiet once more as one basked in silence and one was slightly unnerved by it. The calm one finally spoke again. "I still don't see why I have to guard the kid, I thought he was immortal."

"He is immortal, Konjyoyaki, but you know what Akatsuki is after. The Kyuubi is bound to his soul. What Jashin-sama does is enhance the body to further protect the soul while the soul has a greater ability to heal the body. If the Kyuubi is extracted, part of his soul comes along with it, and I don't know what would happen if the soul was to have nothing to protect it otherwise, and I prefer to keep it that way."

"Heh, you know you would get a greater deal of respect if you actually showed the others how smart you are?" said Konjyoyaki as he stepped out from the shadows, showing a cigarette was hanging limply from his lips.

"True, but people tend to underestimate the stupid ones."

"Pein doesn't. What news do you have, Zetsu?" And from the tree, a man just finished forming. He had yellow eyes and green hair. He also appeared to have a venus flytrap growing from his shoulders. An emotionless expression was on his black and white face.

"It would appear as if Akatsuki is the only group to have mobilized so far, but I predict that information of his affiliation will spread rather rapidly. This kid is going to cause a lot of trouble for himself and those close to him if what Hidan says is true."

"And what of those… people of interest I asked you about?" this hesitant response came from Konjyoyaki.

Zetsu shook his head. "I could find neither of them."

"That's fine, I didn't think you would. Don't even bother looking for them anymore." Konjyoyaki then seemed to just zone out. Rather uncharacteristic of him, not that the others cared much.

"You can go now, Zetsu." This came from Hidan. The man just bowed and left, fusing with a tree. "Now, how was he?"

"He's going to need a lot more training if he is to survive everything. But, he is determined. I will contact you when I have more." With that Hidan left, and Konjyoyaki was alone once more.

Two minutes later, an identical copy of him came from the bushes and bowed. "I'm here, what do you wish?"

"I wanted to commend your creator, the ANBU don't seem to suspect a thing. But, I wanted to know how much longer the transformation will last."

The Konjyoyaki-transformation-clone seemed to think for a second. "I would say about fifty-two hours."

"Acceptable. What about Danzou and 'Junko'?"

"I suspect they know something."

"I thought they might. Good, tell your creator to keep the transformation up for at least two more days, I will meet him here then. Until then I need to see about a problem." He then turned to leave.

"Yes sir." The clone bowed.

Konjyoyaki then turned to call over his shoulder. "And tell your creator to try not fucking up."

"Hai." and then the clone vanished.

The rest only Konjyoyaki heard. "Be safe, Taiki. You're the only friend I have now." He then vanished as a cold gust enveloped him.

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In the Hokage's office 'Konjyoyaki' flinched a bit as he received the memories of his clone. He was lucky that no one else noticed it, or else he would have blown his cover, and even though he doubted Zabuza suspected anything, Junko was still in the room, so he would play it safe… for now. He did have his own plans, after all, and he knew Konjyoyaki would never expect Taiki to betray the man who saved his life. Then again, Taiki had died three days ago, an unfortunate consequence of crossing his path, but unavoidable all together. As soon as he turned into him, he knew everything about him and his abilities. It was a cinch to get under his guard and use one of these jutsu. In the end, Taiki only felt the pain of failing his master, and in his mind, the man laughed. Oh, how easy it was to take someone's life and make it his own. He didn't know how he got here exactly, but he loved it all the same. Now, he would be in control of the board, and soon all of Konjyoyaki's pawns would be his, followed by anything he ever wanted.

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It had been about two hours since the team had entered the woods in pursuit of Kakashi, and they had managed to kill six of the clones. But now, they were exhausted and had all but given up. It was Haku who suggested their next course of action. "Let's just give up. We're tired, and it's probably already been two hours. It would be in our best interest to turn back, he might be waiting for us."

And so, the team turned around. When they got back to the training ground, lo and behold there was Kakashi, reading his porno on a training post. He then closed his book and regarded the team with a… disappointed gaze. "While I am impressed that you managed to take out seven of my clones, you all need to step up your training. You failed to notice the henge I placed upon myself when I announced this test. I never left the place in front of you, yet you assumed that I had used a shunshin to get behind you, failing to notice the subtle difference of a small rock appearing. In the shinobi world, mistakes like that are what get you killed. At this point, I don't feel you would be ready for the Exams, so training starts now."

It was then that Sakura felt she had something to say. "Ano, sensei, you said we took out seven of your clones, but we only took out six."

Kakashi just had his eye twitch. "Is that the only part you listened to? And no you took out seven. I was trapped in ice mirrors and impaled, held down and impaled, dog piled on, tripped, burned, impaled by a burning object from behind, and one of you got a lucky punch in. That adds up to seven. Now…" He was cut off, this time by Naruto.

"None of us stabbed you from behind, and none of us had a burning object."

Now Kakashi was getting pissed. "I don't care, it doesn't matter right now. What does matter is training. Now every one do two-hundred push-ups, and I want them all to be vertical." And so there was much groaning for the rest of the day.

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A man waited in the woods. It had taken him years to get here, he didn't know how many. He had left his loved ones behind to fight this war and hoped the others would follow soon, as he didn't now how he could win when people just turned to smoke when he killed them, then re-appeared, if the silver-haired one was any indication. For now, he would meditate, and continue to observe this place while he made a plan. He was foolish to not ask for help, but he could not regret this, ever. This place had enough dark feelings, he didn't need to, couldn't add his personal feelings to the matter if he was to accomplish his goal. He would destroy this world. He would not leave his loved ones in vain.

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Sorry about the wait, but I was busy doing… stuff. On the bright side, I just set the foundation for sequels! In their paragraphs, I left small hints on what they will be crossovers with. If you can guess both the crossovers, P.M. me so as not to give it away for everyone else. You will get the same prize as last time seeing as the last winner failed to claim it. I won't announce the winner until January, so don't feel rushed. Good luck to you, you will need it for the first one. Also, I plan on doing holiday omakes from now on, but could use some ideas. Please send them in if you have them.

More plots. Okay, more of a filler really, but don't despair. Next chapter, the Chunin Exams! Hooray! That's about it, now leave.


	9. Exams

Okay, here's your Halloween special, including the start of the Chunin Exams, an omake, and a step closer to the sequel. As you can see, I am very excited about that. So, let's start with a bit of a time skip and a flashback, shall we?

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Disclaimer: "Due to a recent influx in finances an a couple lawsuits being dropped, we found enough in the budget to get guests to do this shit for me. So please welcome my character from the Elder Scrolls: Oblivion (also not mine), Lektor!"

A strange dark-blue lizard with a fin on the top of its head a wearing a leather suit and a katana on his back walks in. In a raspy voice, he asks, "Why am I here again?"

A medium sized bag is held in front of him and shaken a bit. A slight jingling can be heard.

"Oh, right. The Acolyte doesn't own the Naruto franchise. If he did, angry fans would kill him and send his soul to the realm of Oblivion to be tormented by the Deadric princes for all eternity. Can I be paid now?"

Someone tosses the bag to him, which he quickly opens, only to find a scrap of paper with 'I.O.U.' messily scrawled on it. In his head, the Argonian was wondering just how the hell we managed to make a piece of paper jingle, for we had already made our escape.

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Chapter Nine: An Actual Exam?!?

Naruto wearily cracked his eyelid as he woke from the nap he was having under the shade of a tree. He then looked down to the weight on his chest. Haku was still peacefully sleeping. He had to crack a smile as he looked down at his girlfriend. How did this happen, exactly? Thanks to the magic of cinema, we can take a look back. Hmm, what do you mean this isn't a movie? Well the point still stands, damn it! Roll the clip! Just shut the fuck up already! I know it's not a movie! Why are you still here?!? Scroll down!

_Flashback:_

_Naruto was panting, sweat pouring off him in buckets, his muscles strained. Kakashi may have been no Hidan, but damn, he came pretty fucking close. This had been going on for a week now, and he could see the results. He was defiantly faster than before, which was step one in his personal program from hell. The other two steps were logic, and self-restraint, which he figured would be much better than this._

"_Okay, let's go meet the others. You did well today, Naruto." This came from Kakashi's clone, which promptly dispelled itself afterwards. Naruto just groaned and made the two-mile trek back to camp. Why the hell the silver-haired jounin made them leave Konoha for training, he would never know. Maybe it was to test their resilience? Ahh, fuck it, he only had a slight idea of what that word meant anyway._

_When he got there, he could see the others weren't fairing much better, what with Sakura passed out in front of the fire, Sasuke slumped against a log, fighting to stay awake, and Haku, sweat going down her lovely pale skin, flushed as a sign of her exhaustion, her hair which was done up in a bun coming slightly loose as she stared into the flames. Naruto rid himself of these thoughts as he took a seat on a log across from the girl he dreamed about at night, wondering if all she ever would be to him was just that._

_It was then that the sensei from hell, as was his new title, came from the foliage with a stack of kindling neatly tucked under his left arm, reading his porno in his right hand. A clone followed him, a net with some fish slung over its shoulder. He then started roasting the fish, the aroma waking Sakura._

_Seeing that everyone was now awake, Kakashi finally spoke. "I have some good news. Tomarrow we will return to town and continue training there, so get a good sleep tonight, it is a twenty-mile hike, after all." Kakashi said this with way too much glee, as the others gave a tired groan. He was pure evil, making them come out here in the first place. Now making them go back after only a week? Training would be even worse than usual. As if his Sharingan gave him the power to read minds, Kakashi then spoke. "And don't worry about training tomarrow. Think of it as my gift to you for exceeding my expectations."_

_Now that cheered everyone up. They then proceeded to eat their meal, followed by getting ready for bed, it came as a surprise when Kakashi announced they would be leaving the village, so naturally they didn't pack anything and had to sleep no the ground or in a tree. Just before Naruto got ready to lie down, Haku approached him, red-faced and fidgeting slightly. "Yes, Haku-chan? Do you need something?" he wondered why she still stayed around him, despite his violent nature, which he was working on. He only killed five animals all week._

_Haku took a shaky breath, before Naruto heard the last thing he thought he would from an angle such as her. "Naruto, I was wondering if, after we got home tomarrow, would you like to go on a date with me?"_

"_I-why of course I-this is so sudden-I would love…" Naruto had to take a moment to recompose himself, something he never had to do before, while Haku waited patently for an answer. Finally, Naruto was ready. "I would love to go on a date with you, but why? We aren't what people would call a perfect couple."_

"_Naruto-kun, you are the nicest boy I know. And despite what you may think, we have a lot in common. Just give it a chance, please?" The nicest boy she knew? She obviously didn't get out much. But he still had one more question._

"_What about Zabuza? Or your uncle for that matter? What would they think?" It's not like he was afraid of them or anything, but he would rather not cross a member of the Kiri Swordsmen, which both were, or relive his experience at the bridge, Konjyoyaki was crazy fast. Then again, he was an asshole, would he even care?_

_The pretty girl in front of him broke him from his musings. "They don't control my life, and I can make my own decisions. Besides, Zabuza is very understanding, and despite his first impression, I know Konjyoyaki cares for me and would want what's best. So what do you say?"_

_She had some good points, so after very little debate, ha decided. "It's a date! When should I pick you up?"_

"_I don't know, is five o'clock good for you?"_

"_Sounds great. I'll pick you up at five, then." And so they both went to sleep, both anticipating tomarrow night. From his vantage point a few meters away, Kakashi just smiled, happy for his students._

_End flashback:_

That had all happened last week, and even though their date was far from perfect, they had both had a great time, even with the numerous threats he received from Zabuza beforehand. He also had a chilling sensation on the back of his neck the whole time, not even knowing if it was that psycho bastard of his mind playing tricks on him. Either way, from that night on, they were officially together. In even better news, everyone had finished training a week earlier than expected, so as a gift, Kakashi gave them the day off, and had a surprise for everyone tomarrow. With a contented sigh, Naruto drifted back to sleep. He could safely say that he was the happiest he had been in his life.

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The next day at the training grounds, Kakashi stood in front of his students, no book in sight. His students knew something was about to happen. "Today, I'm here to congratulate you. I underestimated you and you easily surpassed my expectations. You should all be proud of yourselves. However, I want to teach you one last thing before the Exams start." He then produced five sheets of paper from behind his back. "What I am about to teach you is something only senior chunin and above know, and I'm completely serious when I say I don't expect any of you to complete this. This is a special paper that comes from a chakra infused tree. When exposed to your own chakra, it shows what affinity you have, be it Doton, Futon, Katon, Raiton or Suiton. Allow me to demonstrate." And so, Kakashi concentrated on the paper for a second, and his students watched as the paper crumpled up. "This means I have an affinity with Raiton jutsu. Most people have only one affinity, however, as they grow they can gain two, and it is not unheard of when someone gains three. After you find out what your main affinity is, I'll train you how to control it." And so, he then passed out the remaining papers.

For Sakura, it turned into a pile of dust. In Sasuke's case, it crumpled, then set on fire. He let go of it in shock. Then Haku tried, and watched as it became damp, than split down the middle. Naruto's just split in half.

Kakashi just stroked his chin. "Hmm, I'm not very surprised about Haku's, seeing as she does have a bi-elemental bloodline. I'm also not very surprised at Sasuke's Katon affinity, only that it is second to a Raiton affinity. I probably should have guessed Sakura had a Doton affinity, since she just has the personality to fit it. However, I am surprised Naruto has a Futon affinity, since it is so rare in this part of the world. That's really going to challenge me." He then created some clones. "You know the drill. Move." And so began the training.

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After Kakashi gave them an hour break for lunch, Naruto and Haku met up and began to walk to a ramen bar just a short walk from Naruto's apartment. However, a few minutes before they got there, they heard what sounded like a kid yell for help. "Hey, let go of me, you bastard! Do you know who I am?"

They then heard what sounded like a teenagers voice, clearly pissed off for one reason or another. "Like I give a fuck. I'll teach you to throw water balloons at me." So Haku, who was a caring person, and Naruto, who had her influence rubbing off on him, decided to stop whatever was happening.

As they rounded the corner, they saw a kid, no older than nine, being held up by the scruff of his shirt by a kid who had to be at least fifteen, who dressed like a black cat and also had a wrapped bundle on his back. He also had wet paint running down his face and his clothes were wet.

It was then that a girl spoke. She appeared to be sixteen and had sandy-blonde hair done up in four pigtails, wearing some fishnets and a battle kimono, with a big-ass fan on her back. "Let it go, Kankuro. He's just a kid. Besides, you know what will happen if _he_ catches us doing this."

Kankuro just pulled back his fist. "Shut up, Temari! I'm gonna' teach this little shit a lesson in manners. Besides, I doubt he would care much."

It was then that a cut appeared on his hand that was holding the kid, causing him to drop him on his ass. He then jumped back to inspect the damage, followed by looking up to see his assailant. He got a foot to the face for his effort. As he tumbled back, Temari just looked on as Naruto stopped the assault momentarily while Haku checked on the kid.

Kankuro wasn't down for long, however, as he got up rubbing his face, which had a red footprint on it. "What the hell?!? Don't people have any manners around here?!?" he then reached for the bundle on his back, but was stopped cold by a voice.

"That's enough, Kankuro." Everyone looked up to a nearby tree, to see a red-head with sea-foam green eyes that had black rings around them staring at them, releasing a sizable amount of killer intent. He appeared to be around thirteen, Naruto and Haku's age, and had a gourd on his back and his hitai-ate tied to a sash on his chest. For the first time, Naruto noticed the symbol, an hourglass. The kid then disappeared in a swirl of sand and appeared next to the other Suna shinobi.

Kankuro then shakily tried to speak. "G-g-gaara. L-let me e-e-explain." He was cut off.

"Shut up. I know what happened." He then stared at Naruto, wakizashi still drawn, and to a lesser extent, Haku, who hid the boy behind her. He then spoke in that gravely voice of his. "You. I can sense much power in you. Much dark power. What is your name?"

"Uzumaki Naruto." He answered without missing a beat.

"Well, Uzumaki Naruto, I am Sabaku no Gaara, and these are my siblings. Are you by chance entering the Chunin Exams?"

"I was planning on it."

"Good. I will kill you there. Be prepared to put up a fight. Kankuro. Temari." Both jumped at hearing their names. "Come. We leave now." And so they left.

Naruto just put his wakizashi back and snorted. "Tch. Kill me? People like that really piss me off." He then turned back to his girlfriend. "So, what do we do with the gaki?"

The kid seemed offended by this. "Hey! I'm Sarutobi Konohamaru! My grandfathers the Hokage, so you better treat me with respect!"

Before Naruto could get in a word edgewise, a man wearing the traditional Konoha bodysuit with black sunglasses and a bandana with Konoha's symbol on it appeared. "Honorable grandson! Thank Kami I found you.! You almost gave me a heart attack." He then turned to face Naruto and Haku. "Thank you for helping me find him. I'll make sure to inform the Hokage of your help. I am Ebisu, now can I get your names?"

Naruto, who just wanted to have lunch, responded with a quite unenthusiastic, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto and this is Haku. Can we go now?"

Ebisu's eyes seemed to glint behind his glasses at the mention of his name, and said, "Sure, you may be on your way. Thank you once again for your help." And with that, the two were on their way. Meanwhile, Ebisu thought, '_Hmm, maybe I should reevaluate my opinion of the Kyuubi jinchuuriki.'_

From the trees, Junko just silently watched, before he, too, disappeared.

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The day had finally arrived, as Team 7 met out side the academy that only half of them went to. When they entered, they went up a flight of stairs, only to see the second floor crowded beyond belief. Fortunately, Sasuke also had some lessons in self-restraint, and quietly motioned his team past the others, as not to give away the rather obvious genjutsu in place. Seriously, what dumbass doesn't realize that a room numbered 307 would be on the third floor? It only made it more disappointing when the fact that it was mostly Konoha teams came to light.

Either way, after another brief flight of stairs, they reached the room where the first exam was to take place. Just outside the door, Kakashi was waiting. He just grinned a bit. "I'm not surprised that you're all here. But, truth be told, if one of you didn't show up, I wouldn't be allowed to permit you guys to continue."

"Why not, sensei?" asked Sakura. The others were also slightly confused.

Kakashi just grinned more. "Just remember the most important virtue required to be successful, and you'll be fine. Besides, it will be explained to you eventually. Ja ne." and with that, he disappeared in a swirl of leaves. The team just continued on through the door.

If they thought down stairs was jam-packed, then this was just a bunch of people standing on top of each other and on the various desks and chairs, not literally, mind you. It was also very quiet, with only a few teams talking in hushed whispers. They quickly got into the theme of things and found their own little space to get a battle plan settled, just in case. The silence didn't last nearly long enough, though, for it was then that a boy wearing a hooded sweatshirt a triangle tattoos on his face came up to them, shouting in a very brash manner.

"Hey, duckass, didn't expect to see you and pinkie here!" he then put an arm around Sasuke, who clearly looked uncomfortable at being associated with him. It was than that a long blonde haired girl wearing purple came up to them and bashed the boy in the head.

"Get off Sasuke-kun, Kiba!" she gave a shrill yell. She then tried to side up to him. "How are you doing Sasuke-kun? Did you miss me?"

"Get off him, Ino-pig!" it was then that Sakura and the girl, Ino, got into a shouting match. It was then that a rather chubby boy, with swirls on his cheeks and what looked like a pair of panties with Konoha's symbol on his head approached, eating a bag of chips.

"I'm sorry for my teammates rudeness. I'm Akimichi Chouji. Are you Sasuke-san's and Sakura-san's new teammates?" this question was obviously directed at Naruto and Haku. He held out his hand in greeting.

Naruto grasped it. "Yes, we are. I'm Naruto, and this is Haku."

"Nice to meet you." Politely said Haku.

It was then that three other boys came up to them. A boy with a rather lazy demeanor and his black hair in a pineapple-like ponytail, a boy standing at around 5'10 with sunglasses, a collared coat that covered the lower portion of his face, and a headband that caused his dark-brown hair to go into a sort of mini-afro, and a rather pale boy with a tanto on his back and a strange shirt that stopped right before his stomach, and a full right sleeve while his left sleeve stopped before his elbow.

The lazy boy than spoke. "Do you two always have to fight? I don't see what the big deal is." This was directed at Sakura and Ino.

They then turned to snap at him. "Shut up. Shikamaru!" they screeched in unison. The boy then went to converse with Chouji.

Meanwhile, the silent boy was helping Kiba to his feet. "Thanks Shino." The boy just nodded his head in recognition. Kiba then noticed Naruto and, more importantly, Haku. He walked up to her and tried to act as smooth as possible. "Why hello there. I don't believe I've had the pleasure of meeting you. I'm Inuzuka Kiba. How about after this, I take you on a date?" Haku just looked a little creeped out.

Naruto was shaking in rage at seeing this ingrate try to get _his_ girl. Just as he was about to let a fist fly into his face, the pale boy came up. "Settle down, needle dick, I think the blonde one is about to kill you."

"Shut it, Sai!" he then attempted to degrade the boy. It had no affect on him. However, that name did make Naruto wonder where he heard it before. It was then that a white haired teen with glasses came up to them.

"You must be the new gennin who just recently graduated, so let me give you a word of advice. Everyone here is really tense and is willing to go off at the slightest provocation. If I were you, I would keep it down."

"Yeah, and who are you?" this came from Kiba.

The boy looked embarrassed. "Oh, forgive my manners. I'm Yakushi Kabuto. This is my seventh time taking these exams."

"Wow, you must really suck ass, then." Said Naruto. Haku lightly hit him.

"Don't be rude, Naruto-kun."

Kabuto didn't seem to take any offense. "That may be true, but as such, I was able to gain information on almost everyone here, even most of you."

"Really? Then what do you know about this hottie?" it was then that Kiba pulled Haku close to him, a big mistake. For Naruto, that tore it.

Naruto sent a punch right at Kiba's face, which sent him reeling back and into a Kusa gennin. The Kusa gennin then pushed him directly into a group from Ame, causing one to slam his head into a Taki gennin. The Ame gennin regained his bearings and picked Kiba up by his neck, before he was also picked up by his neck by the Taki gennin and thrown into the group from Oto. And so the domino effect continued until everyone was fighting each other.

Just then, at the front of the room, a huge plume of smoke appeared and out stepped several chunin and Morino Ibiki. You could tell he was pissed by his deep bellow. "Hey you little shits! Take a seat before your disqualified along with your team!"

This seemed to get everyone's attention as they scrambled to find seats even the surprisingly semi-conscious Kiba. As such, no one from the same team was sitting next to each other, and a bunch of teams were disqualified, seeing as multiple gennin were unconscious due to the brawl. Naruto himself was sitting next to a Kiri gennin and a Kumo gennin, who had the audacity to even come here after the kidnapping took place all those years ago.

Ibiki cleared his throat. "Now, in a moment, you will be given a test consisting of ten questions to test your general knowledge on topics all shinobi should know. On the paper itself will be nine questions, with the final being given during the final fifteen minutes of the exam. Now there are three rules you should consider…"

Naruto just zoned out as the man droned on and on, thinking, '_An actual test, huh? Didn't see that one coming. Just wish this guy would shut up so I can get this over with.' _ He then just sat there until the tests were passed out, when he contacted his Bijuu. '_Hey Kyuubi, help me with this, will ya?'_

The burning in his skull told him that the fox heard. _**'Kid, I'm a chakra abstract created for the sole purpose of spreading word of Jashin-sama's existence. Do you really think I know any of this shit?' **_Naruto just mentally nodded his head. _**'Fine, take the variable and divide it by that one. Carry the eight…'**_

This went on for nine questions and he was done in fifteen minutes, so he decided to draw a little something. Half an hour later, he was putting the finishing touches on his picture when Ibiki announced the tenth question was now going to be announced. "You will now be allowed to take the final question. However, you have a choice to make. One, you can bow out now and have you and your team fail." This, as imagined caused quite an uproar. Ibiki continued. "On the other hand, if you take it and get it wrong, you will be banned from ever taking the exams again."

Now, this shut everyone up. Soon, hands started to rise. Naruto snorted at these people. Really, a collaborative effort between all of the shinobi villages? These people were idiots. He was now thankful that Kakashi gave him those lessons in logic. Besides, he could always just outlive everyone until they forgot, but that would just be a pain in the ass. Soon, there were a total of twenty teams left.

Seeing that it was doubtful anyone else would drop out, Ibiki finally yielded. "Thus ends the tenth question. Everyone here passes." Now, this sent some people through a loop, so Ibiki explained that the choice was the question. Chunin went on life or death missions and had to weigh the risk of death, or the village's safety at all times. He then removed his bandana to show his horribly scarred head and continued his explanation of risks.

All of a sudden, a black bundle was launched through the window and pinned to the wall with a few kunai. It unraveled to reveal Anko and a banner that read, 'The sexy and single, Mitarashi Anko.

"Twenty teams, Ibiki? I expected you to do better than that. (1)" She said, surveying the room.

He just poked his head out from behind the banner. "Don't blame me. The teams are unnaturally resilient this year."

"Whatever, I'll cut them down by at least half." She then regarded the teams. "Everyone meet at training grounds 44 tomarrow at eight o'clock sharp!" she then exited via the broken window. Everyone else went through the door.

Later, Ibiki would come across Naruto's test while collecting exams, more importantly, his drawing. It depicted a rather good drawing of him, with a 'B' on his chest, and a naked Anko tied up, with him about to slap her ass. Above it was the heading 'Bondage man'. He just grinned a bit. He was defiantly showing this to Anko before the test tomarrow.

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Omake: Konjyoyaki was down at the local convenience store located a block away from the apartment the Hokage provided him with. He was currently running low on smokes and thus had to get some more. Browsing the aisle for a bit, he finally found his brand, the last pack, too. Deciding this would tie him over until he could hit the next shop, he reached a gloved hand out to get them.

Apparently, someone else had an interest in his smokes. Turning his head to the left, he saw a man dressed in traditional shinobi garb, semi-combed back dark-hair, and a beard stretching from his side-burns. He also had a red cloth around his waste with the kanji for 'Fire' on it. The man appeared to be sizing him up as well.

Both men let go of the pack at the same time and turned to face each other completely. The man spoke first. "I am Sarutobi Asuma, and I'm afraid those smokes are coming with me, friend."

"Well, Asuma-san, you may call me Konjyoyaki, and I doubt you can persuade me to give these smokes up." Was his reply. He then continued. "I can see no peaceful resolution, thus there is only one way to decide." He got into a stance.

Asuma reciprocated, getting into his own stance. "I agree, though I feel the need to give you fair warning, I was one of the twelve guardians of Hi no Kuni."

Konjyoyaki nodded. "Likewise, I feel I should tell you I was one of the former Seven Shinobi Swordsmen of the Mist."

Asuma looked amused. "Really? I don't see a sword."

"Nor will you. The rules for this battle; no weapons or jutsu, only taijutsu. Agreed?" he deepened his stance.

"Agreed." And so both disappeared in a cloud of smoke. So engrossed in battle they were, neither one noticed a rather depressed looking kid snatch the smokes and walk out of the store, not even bothering to pay. They did notice when the alarm went off, however, the disappearance of their precious nicotine sticks, and got off the ground, both mid-punch.

"Truce?" questioned Asuma.

"Truce." Konjyoyaki agreed. "After him." and so the both bound after the broody culprit, both missing the building that said 'Acolyte's Smoking Emporium', along with the sign in the window that said 'All cigarettes, half off, one day only, memberships available'.

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I don't know, I may continue that omake. Tell me what you think. Also, some of you may have noticed (probably not) that I took down my other story. Why? I didn't quite know where I was going with it, but it will be reposted eventually (like you care).

(1). Yes, I do believe Naruto affected the amount of teams that stayed, however, I don't believe it was that great a variable.

What does the infamous training ground 44 hold in store for Naruto and his team? Well, I still haven't decided, but stay tuned nonetheless. Happy Halloween!


	10. Revalations

Well, here we find ourselves again at the prelude of one of my crappy chapters. Now, most may ask why this chapter was as late as it was. Well, it was a lot of contributing factors. You see, I hate November with a passion, mostly due to all the family time I'm forced to spend with people I don't even like. What with birthdays, celebrations, sales my mother drags me to, and, of course, Thanksgiving, which I don't even see why is a holiday to begin with. Also, Modern Warfare 2 is awesome. Anyway, I also came down with a mild case of the H1N1 virus, and temporarily lost my drive for writing this, but I got better. Ahh, I'm ranting now, so get ready for some character development. Yes, more, but fear not, if I planned this correctly, next chapter will be the prelims.

Disclaimer: Apparently due to the stint pulled last disclaimer, we can't get any more guests in our offices. My bad. So, we'll just have to do this the semi-old fashioned way. Ahem, I DON'T FUCKING OWN THE DAMN AMIME SERIES YOU HALF-ASSED BUNCH OF DICK WEASLES! IF I DID, DO YOU THINK I WOULD BE TYPING ON THIS GODDAMN PIECE OF SHIT DELL FROM 1996! DO YOU! HELL, I CAN BARLY USE THE FUCKING INTERNET ON THIS FUCKING PRODUCT OF COCKSUCKERS AROUND THE WORLD. DAMN YOU COPYRIGHT INFRINGMENT LAWS AND THE LAWYERS THAT CAME UP WITH THEM AND THE WHOLE FUCKING CUNT OF A GOVERNMENT. DAMN YOOOOUUUUUUUUU! Okay, now with that out of my system, let's move on.

Chapter 10: Revelations

It was dark now at the academy, the exam having been finished hours earlier, but someone was still there, wandering the dark and desolate halls. The lock on the window was easy to pick, and it appeared security was low to none, as they had yet to encounter anyone. It was also rather cool inside, causing them to shiver a bit.

Suddenly, they turned and grabbed someone behind them in the dark hallway, pushing them up a rather large window by their neck. In an angered voice, the man asked, "What do you want?"

"Now, now, Konjyoyaki, is that any way to treat your superiors?" asked the man against the wall, the pressure on their neck having no effect. The moon suddenly shone through, lighting up both figures. The other man had auburn hair, his sunglasses slightly tilted to the side revealing a grey-ringed eye.

"Again, what do you want?" Konjyoyaki could now see his own breath, which was not a good sign. He had to get this meeting over with.

Junko noticed this. "You seem a little tense, Konjyoyaki, maybe you should have a smoke? And please, put me down. Wouldn't want to jeopardize everything you've worked for, would we?"

"Get to the fucking point!" now, Konjyoyaki was getting pissed. He would have loved to have a smoke right now, but really didn't want to set the fire alarms off. He was pushing so hard on Junko that the glass behind him was starting to crack. He so much wanted to kill the man right now, but he was right, so he reluctantly set the man on his feet.

"Fine. It has recently come to my attention that you are using my resources in helping you locate two individuals. I will give you information on where one is if you do one thing for me. I want the Kyuubi jinchuuriki by the end of this exam. I also believe you know the location of the Sanbi jinchuuriki. Convince him to cooperate with us, and you will be one step closer to finding your precious imotou." At hearing this, he froze in place, giving Junko an incredulous look. That quickly turned into white-hot anger as he shook from the cold.

Could he really trust this man? If so, he may find his imotou. But he would injure numerous people imperative to other plans, along with his master. Then again, his first mission was to find his family. But the man in front of him clearly brought him to this place so he would have an excuse to quickly agree to anything just to get out of the building. He held his head in pain as a deep throbbing came from within. His plan worked. "Fine, I'll do it, Pein."

"Good. Also, call me Junko. And be careful around Taiki, he will only hurt you in the end." Konjyoyaki was left to ponder what that meant, as both he and Pein went separate ways, Pein to places unknown, and him to Kiri. He already had a plan forming as he smoked on his cigarette, but still, maybe he could find a loophole in this. He would have made an excellent lawyer with how many loopholes he could find.

He shook his head, he needed to be in Kiri by noon, and he would do it. He had a few people who owed him, and it was time to collect. He exhaled his lifeline as he rushed at amazing speeds into the night.

It was morning at Training grounds 44, and it would appear to Naruto as if all the teams were present, as he and his team were among the masses. Apparently, the other rookies had made it as well, as he could easily hear them. He swore as he looked upon the looming forest in front of them, if he saw Kiba, he would kill him slow and painfully.

He almost didn't notice as Haku turned to him. "What was with you yesterday?"

"What do you mean?" he asked as he turned to the person he had the greatest personal attachment to.

"I mean what you did to that boy. You were incredibly violent and could have killed him. I'm amazed he was still conscious"

"Hey, he brought that upon himself for trying to get into your pants. Besides, death is a part of life, especially when one is a shinobi." He was starting to get aggravated now.

"I'm aware of that, but I can take care of myself, thank you."

"Look, I'm sorry, but it was just a natural reaction."

"I understand, it's just that I don't like violence. Please try to restrain yourself in the future."

"Heh, whatever." Naruto then turned away from his girlfriend, who did the same, and was approached by Sasuke, who saw the whole thing.

"Hey, don't worry about it. Kiba got what he deserved. In school, he was nothing but a pervert, and I'm surprised no one did that before."

"Thanks, I guess, but why do you care? I heard that the Uchiha were all stuck up and arrogant, but you seem to be different than I expected."

Sasuke just got a light grin on his face. "I did use to be like that, especially after what _he_ did. But then I met you, and you helped me. I suppose you are my first friend." Naruto had a pretty good idea of who _he_ was, but didn't feel like bringing it up.

"Well then, I guess we can be good friends." And Naruto left it at that, not quite sure how to handle all of these new situations.

Meanwhile, Sakura was confronting Haku. "Despite the fact that Kiba is the biggest pervert I know, your right. I mean, Naruto seems like a good guy, but he is incredibly violent."

"Thanks, but why do you care?"

"I've had my own trials in love, but I know it will turn out good in the end. You need to learn this to have a successful relationship, so the sooner you work past these problems, the better."

"Really, thanks. I suppose my first impression of you was wrong, Sakura."

"Don't mention it. And if you have anymore problems, let me know and I'll help."

Haku let out a smile. "Sure."

The general peace was broken when Mitarashi Anko made her appearance. She emerged from a giant cloud of smoke, which quickly dissipated into the air. She the began her speech, "Alright maggots, this here is Training ground 44, affectionately known as the Forest of Death."

"You can come out now." Yagura had just gotten out of a meeting with his supervisors regarding the next Chunin Exams. He was a short man with short blonde hair and violet eyes that lacked pupils, with a scar going from his left one to mid-cheek.

From the shadows came Konjyoyaki, looking slightly winded and wheezing lightly. He quickly got into a kneeling bow, a sign of deep respect. "Yagura-sama."

"Stand up Konjyoyaki. You know you don't need to do that anymore." Konjyoyaki rose, looking at one of the only people alive who knew he was there while he was completely suppressing his chakra. He then took out his pack.

"You don't mind, do you?"

Yagura shook his head. "Not at all, but you'll die soon if you keep smoking like this."

He quickly lit up and took a deep breath, relieving himself of the cold environment, if only temporarily. "Dead if I do, dead if I don't. At least this way I can live longer and complete my mission."

"Ah, yes. Your dream to reunite your remaining family. Your undying loyalty is the reason I helped you escape. Most people here think you're dead, you know."

"I'm quite aware of that fact. However, it's for the best."

"I agree. So tell me, how's my favorite spy doing?"

"I am fine, but I have news. I have reason to believe Akatsuki knows about your situation."

"I see." Yagura got up from his desk and turned to the giant window behind him, giving whoever looked out it a view of the entire village. "This was inevitable. I should have never let them have this great an influence in the village. Now this village is in an internal strife, people are clashing against one another, with no one spared. Neighbors, families, brothers. Everyday, more victims of this violence litter the streets, yet I am still seen as a hero in the eyes of those who fear the ones with the genes of evolution. Others want me dead because I caused the deaths of loved ones. Either way, there is nothing I can do to change what Akatsuki has influenced me to. Only another individual can hope to rectify this."

"Stop, you don't know what you're saying."

Yagura turned to Konjyoyaki and shook his head. "As you know, due to my_ condition_, I can see glimpses of what is to come for this place. I have for all my life, and no matter what I do, I can change nothing. But I can see change, I can see peace and harmony in the village regarded as the most brutal in the five great nations. I can see it in the near future, but that future doesn't include me." All was quiet for a while as this information sunk in. Yagura then walked to Konjyoyaki with a solemn look on his face. "Do not feel bad. I've been dying for a long time now, but unlike you, there is nothing I can do to slow the process. I don't expect myself to survive the next eight months."

"Who else knows?"

"No one. Then again, you're the only one I can trust with this information. You're the only one who is actually close to me." Yagura placed a hand on Konjyoyaki's shoulder. "Soon you will no longer have me to be a burden to weigh you down."

"Don't say that! I follow you because I want to. And I will make sure you don't die." Yagura then walked over to his desk and pressed the button under it. A panel on the left side of the room moved to reveal a safe. He walked over to it and opened it. From its depths he pulled out a white-sheathed chukato with a slightly curved handle, which he tossed to Konjyoyaki.

"Take it. I've been meaning to give it to you."

He deftly caught it and just stared at it, followed by staring at Yagura. "What is this?"

"It's your blade from your stint with the original swordsmen. I sense you will need it. I know I don't."

"That's not what I meant!" he would have continued, but quickly hid in the shadows, for it was then that the office doors opened. In walked a red haired girl of about seventeen with her long hair done up in a bun with a few strands hanging down her back. Her blue eyes scanned the room before she regarded the Mizukage.

"Hey shortie, we could have sworn you were taking to someone, where are they?"

Behind her came in a girl of about the same age with her blue hair cut short in a pixie style. She had calm red eyes as she regarded the other girl. "Onee-chan, please be respectful to the Mizukage."

The red head turned to her sister. "Shut up Emi. This guy is the reason sensei is dead." Emi just bowed her head. That is, until she felt a hand on her shoulder. There was the final person who had entered the office. He was a boy of the same age as the girls with short purple hair with a bit of fringe hanging in his deep purple eyes.

He spoke in a voice that radiated calmness and demanded obedience. "Ignore Atsuko. The Mizukage obviously would have had us killed already if he didn't feel bad for something. Besides, there was nothing we could do."

Atsuko then turned to the boy, anger in her blue eyes. "Shut up Kazuki!"

Kazuki ignored her and regarded Yagura. "We have come for a mission."

Yagura, who had remained out of the proceedings up until now, turned to him. "I am not the one who will assign you your mission today."

Kazuki got a contemplative look on his face. "Then who is, Mizukage-sama?"

Atsuko finally had it, and yelled, "Stop being so damn polite!" she then caulked back her fist and threw it at Kazuki, who made no attempt to stop it.

However, it was stopped. It was stopped by a gloved hand that had a ring on the index finger with the kanji for 'blue'. That hand led to a white sleeve, she noticed, that was attached to a trench coat that was on the last man she expected to see. That man was Konjyoyaki, his sword nowhere in sight. "Now, now, Atsuko. Is that anyway to treat your Onii-san?"

"Sensei?" both Atsuko and Emi asked in hushed, disbelieving voices, both their eyes glistening like jewels due to the tears that were welling up. They both hugged him at the same time. Kazuki turned to the Mizukage.

"He was alive?" he just got a nod for an answer before he walked over to what he considered his whole family. After a while, Konjyoyaki broke it up.

"Come on, we have to go now. I'll answer any questions you may have on the way." The group nodded and off they went.

Back in the office, Yagura was contemplating. "There are many great things in store for that one, are there not?" he was talking to seemingly no one. Only he could hear a response.

"You have no idea. Let me show you what's in store for him." came a deep, hollow voice from inside his head. Before he could ask what it meant, he was forced to both hold his head and grasp at his chest, where his Bijuu's seal was located. When he was done seeing the vision, he grew angry, but quickly became placid again.

"Hmm, I always assumed smoking would kill him, not this. It is unfortunate that I cannot stop him." he could feel the Sanbi smirking.

"You also assume that killed him, but no. I can see a bit more of his sad, pathetic life. Here's how it looks."

And so, again he was forced to endure bearing witness to Konjyoyaki's pain and suffering. At the end, he was left with one question. "Do you think he will re-find happiness?" the question was left lingering in the air.

Team 7 had been jumping through the trees for at least two hours now, searching for someone with an earth scroll. So far, they had yet to encounter anyone. It was then that they came to a small clearing.

Naruto took point, "Alright, let's rest here. Maybe we can find a way to be more efficient." The team sat down on the cold ground and pondered for a bit. It was then that another team came up on them.

They were from Taki, if their headbands meant anything, and were very unmemorable with there plain facial features. One boy, the leader Naruto assumed, stepped forward, a cocky grin on his face. "Oi, what do we have here? Looks like we got lucky. I would have to say that these guys are green, no. Let's put 'em outta' their misery." And with that, he charged, his teammates just wondering how someone could be that stupid.

Sasuke was quick to take initiative, forming hand seals at a rapid pace. When he was done, he brought his hand up to his mouth, and shouted, "Katon: Hosenka no jutsu!" and with that, he launched at least a dozen little fireballs at the charging idiot. His momentum was to great for him to stop, and thus lead him to running full tilt into all of the burning spheres of pain. He was on the ground, moaning in pain, less than three meters from his original spot.

One of the teammates finally spoke after witnessing the pathetic display. "Look, we don't want any trouble. If you let us go, we'll give you our…" he was cut off by his own scream of pain as a kunai imbedded itself deep into his shoulder, courtesy of Naruto.

The other guy just looked on in terror. "What the fuck?!? We surrender, okay?!? Please, just take our scroll and leave us be!" he pulled out an Earth scroll and tossed it to the feet of Naruto, who just gripped his wakizashi, an insane look in his eyes and a sick grin plastered on his face.

He was stopped by a voice and a hand on his shoulder. "Please listen, Naruto-kun. We've won, there is no need to pursue this fight any longer." Both his smile and weapon dropped as Haku tightened her grip on his shoulder. His eyes now had an annoyed gleam in them.

"Fine, get the hell outta' here, ya' damn fuckers." And so the sole gennin untouched by Team 7 picked up his burned comrade and had his temporarily disabled one follow him far out of the area. Naruto picked up the scroll as he watched the idiots run. He then turned back to his team. "Well, that was easy. Let's go" and so they continued on to the tower in the middle of the forest, Haku shooting looks of uncertainty at Naruto the whole time.

The hallways of the Root ANBU facility were dark and dreary, despite the white walls that made them up. If one were to focus, they could sense danger and foreboding everywhere they turned, with the source seemingly coming from one door. It was that door that 'Taiki' was approaching, having been called there by Danzou for a meeting. He just smirked behind his mask as the guard made way for him.

As he entered the office, he quickly bowed to the form of Danzou, the door closing behind him. Danzou had an inquiring look and was quick to jump on his suspicions. "Who are you?"

'Taki' grew nervous, though it could not be seen. "Whatever do you mean, Danzou-sama?"

Danzou growled and rose from his chair, approaching the false Root agent quickly and delivering a punishing blow, with strength unbefitting of one his age, into his stomach. He was quickly dropped as he desperately gasped for air. "I'll ask once more, who are you?"

When the imposter finally caught his breath, he rose to his feet and faced the bandaged man, who was growing impatient with the lack of an answer. "Fine, my name is not important, but you are right in your assumptions of me not being Taiki"

Danzou just nodded. "Fair enough. Though I must ask, how did you so flawlessly impersonate one of my best shinobi?"

"It was quite simple with my ability to mimic another's appearance just by touching them. It is just like your Taiki's ability, though I take it a step further. I can mimic their powers, even their memories with my power, just by touching them. But how did you know I was not Taiki?" this was the explanation Danzou got from the now nameless man.

He just smirked a bit as he sat back down at his desk. "Well, let's just say that I can see parts of you no one else can, including your intentions. The real Taiki would never even entertain the thought of injuring Konjyoyaki." Now, the man was worried. Danzou could get him killed and ruin all of his plans. But, no matter what, he could not panic. Danzou smirked more. "You need not worry about me blowing your cover. You see, I, too, wish to see Konjyoyaki dead, but not yet. He is still of some use. Here's the deal, you serve under me, and I ensure that you get to kill Konjyoyaki when the time comes. What do you say, 'Taiki'?"

He just smirked. "Deal."

It had been almost twenty-four hours since the test started, and after getting lost a few times, Team 7 was finally approaching the tower. They decided to stop though, about a quarter mile from it. They were going to check to make sure they had everything they needed and rest for a bit, just in case they were ambushed as they neared closer to the tower.

Naruto suddenly got up, only saying, "Gotta' take a piss." before disappearing into the foliage. He wandered a bit before he finally found a spot he deemed suitable. After taking care of his business, he was about to leave when he heard something. Quickly taking up a position to hide, he waited until the source of the noise made its presence clear.

Low and behold, there was the gennin that Sasuke had burned, taking a piss right under him. he could also hear him muttering to himself, things like, "Damn duck ass," and "Fucking Konoha, what happened to pacifism?" and finally, "Shit, it burns." Naruto was just about laughing his ass off at this guy's plight, and didn't notice his loss of balance until he fell out of the tree he was in, right behind the Taki gennin.

After he regained his bearings and equilibrium, he stood up, only to receive a devastating blow to his chest that cracked a few of his ribs. He flew back into a tree with another sickening crack.

As he lay there, trying to understand what was happening, he was grasped by his neck and held up against the tree by the irate gennin. "You!" he shouted, "You a part of the ones who did this to me!" he then indicated to his burned body, forgetting that he also had a part to play in that. Naruto could feel the burning indicating that the Kyuubi was healing him in his chest and back, but was losing air, even more so as he was punched in the stomach, possibly injuring some vital organs, seeing as he coughed up some blood. He then had the boy whisper in his ear. "I'm gonna' make you pay."

Naruto's vision was starting to blur as he did the only thing he could. He shakily gripped his sword and slashed the boy across the face, causing him to drop Naruto and grasp at his face instead, blood flowing through his fingers and off of Naruto's blade.

The blonde grinned, an insane gleam in his eyes as he backed away and slowly drew a pentagram in the dirt. He finally felt an end to the burning as he finished healing, and stepped into his God's symbol. The boy turned to Naruto, only to see him chuckling, looking insane. He spoke with mirth in his voice as he regarded the boy's fear. "Now, you will feel pain you thought unimaginable." Naruto licked his blade and his skin changed colour to obsidian with white markings for bones. He took off his cloak and undershirt and held his blade to his liver. The last thing the boy heard was, "Feel the pain of Jashin-sama!" before he turned and ran, only to collapse a second later from a burning pain in his abdomen.

He turned over to see Naruto with his sword imbedded into that exact place and whimpered a bit. He then screamed in pain as he felt as if he was stabbed in the leg, tearing apart muscle and tendons. He felt that stabbing sensation over and over again until he started to feel mercifully numb. He died of blood loss soon after as Naruto started to heal and get his stuff together.

It was then that Haku emerged from the bushes, wondering what the sound she heard was. What she saw shocked her. There was a blood covered Naruto, and as she looked around, she spotted the burned gennin from earlier, covered in gashes and cuts. She took one last look at Naruto before she turned and ran.

Naruto followed after her, yelling, "Wait, it's a misunderstanding!" but she didn't stop, she just disappeared into the trees.

When Naruto finally got back to the camp, Sasuke was the only one there, lying unconscious on the ground. Naruto quickly awoke him and asked what happened. "We were ambushed after Haku came out of the trees. I saw them get knocked out by two girls before I was hit as well."

"Who were they?"

Before he got an answer from Sasuke, a voice behind him answered. "They were the Tsubasa triplets, my old gennin team." Naruto quickly spun around only to see a fist greet his face. Then, all he saw was darkness.

Hmm, Guess I didn't plan all to well. But, it's better than nothing. Orochimaru will be appearing next chapter, and the forest will come to an end.

Once again, sorry for the lateness, but I promise there won't be such a big delay next time. And sorry I forgot the omake. Ah well, until next time. Au revoire.


	11. The Perliminaries

Hey everyone. Here's your dose of writing for you. Don't expect to see me again until mid-January. Don't ask why. I also just figured out that my italicizes and bolds don't show up with my breaks. I don't know if it just happens to me, or if I'm using a different format, but please make sure your reviews include any problems you may encounter if you do review. Speaking of reviews, I somehow made it to ten chapters without a single flame. Either this story is just that hard to find, or flamers can't waste their time on shit of this magnitude. Also, slight change of plans. Instead of this chapter, Orochimaru will show up later, and the prelims will proceed as planned. Oh well. Moving on.

Disclaimer: I think by now the point has gotten across that I don't own the franchises that I write about, so I find this quite redundant, and you quite stupid if you can't understand that.

Chapter 11: The Conflict Continues

Naruto awoke hours later. As he looked around, he saw Sasuke tied to a tree with ninja wire, his hands bound to his sides with duck-tape, making even single-handed seals impossible. Tape was also used to keep his mouth shut, and he could see he was awake. As he observed himself, he saw he was also pretty much stranded up shit creek without a paddle. He also tasted something horribly fowl that had a strange texture that just made him want to gag.

As he shifted a bit, the wire cut into his clothes and skin, cutting him and letting blood flow. That didn't deter him, though, as he vainly struggled to get the upper hand on the wire and eventually break free. The electric jolt he got as a result, however, was effective in temporarily dissuading him on his idea.

He looked to his right as he heard someone approach. "Finally awake, eh?" it was Konjyoyaki, his speech lacking smugness, irritation, impatience, anything. It was… hollow. Naruto's confusion was quickly replaced by anger as he once again began to squirm in his confines, only to be shocked again. "That's quite enough, Kazuki." From his peripheral, Naruto could see some purple haired kid come out and nod his head.

So far, Sasuke had been silent, watching the proceedings. It was then that he started muttering something. Konjyoyaki approached him and savagely tore off the duck-tape, watching as the raven-haired kid grimaced a bit. It was then he asked a simple question. "Why are you doing this?"

Konjyoyaki just gave an indignant snort, almost amused by the question. "Since when does someone need a reason to commit an act of violence, be it psychological or physical? Or, could it be that some one hasn't been entirely truthful with you? Hiding their past, exploiting you?" here, he pointedly stared and Naruto, Sasuke sending him confused glances, as Kazuki, seeing his sensei's nod, ripped off Naruto's gag.

The first thing he did was spit out the sock that was stuffed in his mouth, followed by spiting a bit. When he finally got over himself, he noticed the annoyed glare of Konjyoyaki, and quickly became serious himself.

"What do you plan to do with Haku-chan?"

"Still hopelessly chasing after her, I see. Do you really believe her to feel the same way after what she witnessed you do?" Naruto just growled. "I suppose I could indulge you. You see, the rest of your team is currently being held for transport to a certain client. Once there, they will most likely be killed, seeing as they were expecting you."

After his shock wore off, Naruto quickly became enraged. Haku was going to die? Not on his watch! With strength no one thought he possessed, he somehow broke his restraints and charged at Konjyoyaki.

Kazuki was quick to spring into action, but was stopped as a second Naruto grabbed him from behind. His eyes widened in shock. He hadn't even heard a jutsu be called out. Another Naruto was busy freeing Sasuke.

Konjyoyaki's eyes narrowed in contemplation. _"Interesting. His anger must have caused an influx of chakra, no doubt a result of the Kyuubi. This influx must be so great, that it allows him to perform jutsu without hand-seals or verbal inclination."_ Despite being lost in thought, he was easily able to stop the fist aimed at his face and seemingly faze out of existence. He quickly reappeared holding Naruto's fist painfully behind his back as he continued his observations. "_It also appears that, while the original is irrational in his actions, his clones remain passive, keeping others from interfering, yet opening possibilities for help, until likely told otherwise." _He tuned back into reality as he heard Naruto mutter something.

"You bastard. You said you were no longer a threat to us. What is this?"

"I wasn't a threat to you. However, then I received a mission, and I was a threat to you." He explained simply as he ducked a swing from Sasuke and kicked him into the clone that held Kazuki, all the while keeping his grip on Naruto and twisting his arm a bit more.

Naruto grimaced a bit, but refused to yield. "So, that's it? You basically sell yourself out to whoever has a job they need done? You're a damn whore! You try to screw as many people over as you can, just to get paid!"

This kid was really starting to get on his nerves, but Konjyoyaki kept his cool. "You assume I lend my services to just anyone. All for money, no less. I don't care for monetary gain or any of that. My reason is my own."

Naruto savagely struck his head back and hit his restrainer in the face, causing him to reel back, giving Naruto the opportune chance to jump him as his clone and Sasuke kept Kazuki engaged with them. He poised his sword at his chest, right above his heart. He then got right in Konjyoyaki's dazed face and shouted. "I don't give a fuck about that bullshit! You don't get it! You sold out one of your own family! And for what?!? Your reason is pointless!" Now, Konjyoyaki was a calm individual that could turn into a royal, cold-hearted bastard in high-pressure situations, yet managed to somehow keep a level head. But, he never betrayed family, and what was shouted in his face struck a cord deep inside Konjyoyaki. Not the good kind.

In a surprising feat of flexibility, he brought up his legs and circled them around Naruto's neck. He then threw them back, sending Naruto flying into a tree. As he got up, dazed, about twenty feet from his original position, he blinked, and Konjyoyaki appeared in front of him and held him up by his neck against the tree, causing him to struggle for air.

That struggle soon stopped as he was released, only to be impaled through his stomach by a fist, virtually nailing him to the tree, blood staining grass and bushes red. He was now eye-level with his tormenter, about a foot off the ground. Kazuki, after dealing with the clone, was watching the events unfold with Sasuke, who was scarred for his friend. Kazuki was scarred too, but for different reasons. He had never seen his sensei filled with so much anger. The words spoken next were heard by everyone in that clearing, despite them being whispered.

"You don't get it. So, allow me to explain it to you." Although he spoke calmly, everyone could feel that cold edge that Konjyoyaki held in his voice, sharp enough to cut the strongest metal with the barest amount of effort. "You see, it was two year ago as I was traveling the border of Kumo, seeking out a lead about some information I wished to acquire, when I was confronted by a man in a black cloak with red clouds. I later came to know this as the standard dress of an organization by the name of Akatsuki. More on that later. You see the man was very peculiar, being half black, half white, and apparently bipolar. He also what seemed to have a venus flytrap sprouting from his shoulders. So, I was walking along, when this man just phased out of the ground. He introduced himself as Zetsu, and apparently an associate wanted to meet me. Curious, I agreed, and met him later in the forest with a man you may know quite well. You see, the associate went by the name Hidan and, as I later found out, was a Jashinist."

He paused as he let this sink in, and through the pain and the blood that was gathering in his mouth, Naruto asked a question. "What did Hidan-san want?"

Konjyoyaki still had a serious face on. "I'm glad you asked." He neither looked nor sounded glad. In fact, he sounded downright murderous. "You see, Hidan asked me to join Akatsuki to help him gain information. He needed more people he could count on in the organization. So, I joined, hoping to use the various resources they had. Their leader soon confronted me, and, seeing how I was of more use out in the field, I was designated as a spy, acting on my own to gain various sources of information, much like Zetsu. It soon became apparent that the organization wanted world domination. To do this, we had to capture all the Bijuu and seal them into a sort of node that would focus their energy and let us control it. Now, here comes the good part. From what Hidan told me, I understand that your god keeps your soul alive no matter what. However, your Bijuu is bound to your soul so tightly, that the extraction process would most likely rip out a large chunk of your soul that Jashin's power was keeping in, causing these opposing forces to eventually combine and destroy this plane of existence. So, I was assigned to protect you, seeing as I already agreed to follow him by joining. It was then that I was assigned to capture you."

There was a long pause as Konjyoyaki contemplated on what to say next, lighting another cancer stick with his arm still through Naruto, who was beginning to feel numb. The bleeding had stopped a few minutes earlier, and Sasuke was still wondering how Naruto was still alive, but paid less attention to that seeing as he just discovered that Naruto had a Bijuu sealed in him. And he could probably guess which one, which may also explain why people treated Naruto the way they did if Kakashi was telling the truth.

After regaining his muse, he continued. "Now, you see, many years before, I made a promise to myself. I suppose you could consider it a mission. I'm sure Zabuza told you about me and my first-come-first-serve policy. That just means that in the end, that mission will be the one I follow all the way through to what the client intended, not weasel around it. Now, how the leader learned of my promise, I don't know. But, he promised information if I presented you to him before this exam ended. Now, this mission directly conflicts with Hidan's, who learned of the task I was to undertake soon after. I know I can't trust the leader, Hidan is aware of this, so he promised to help me forcefully get the information out of him. The problem is, it's painfully obvious that he could take us both at the same time. As you can see, I am in quite the predicament."

Konjyoyaki then removed his arm from Naruto and let him slide to the ground. The Kyuubi started to heal him soon after. Konjyoyaki retreated back to where the other two were, Sasuke still trying to process all the information and Kazuki just standing calmly, having heard most of this on the way here.

Konjyoyaki then turned to Naruto as he got up. "You were right about one thing, though. Haku is family. I will help to retrieve her, but you must convince her to accept you back." He threw Naruto over his shoulder, Kazuki doing the same for Sasuke, as the vanished into the trees.

The shinobi were speeding through the trees. After some persuasion, Sasuke had managed to convince Konjyoyaki to let him and Naruto travel on their own accord. The two were hanging in the back with Kazuki. Sasuke had many questions for Naruto, but those could wait. Right now, he was more curious about Konjyoyaki.

"Hey, Kazuki, was it?" the older boy turned his head to the Uchiha to show he heard. "Can you tell us about Konjyoyaki? What did he mean when he said he didn't take missions from just anybody?" he just got a level stare from the purple-haired boy and all was silent for a few moments. Finally, he received an answer.

"You see, my sensei is very critical in all the actions he does, managing to think through all probable outcomes and options someway or another. Some would call him paranoid. He will only accept a mission if he sees a positive outcome for himself in some form and was sure he was told all of the details. Or, if the mission was from someone he respected, he would take it, not caring about his gain, but once again if nothing was being withheld form him. He is very loyal and is determined to see a mission through. This does not bar him from accepting conflicting assignments, though. This usually only happens if it would help him with his goal." The boy paused, unsure if he should continue.

Someone settled his resolve for him. "If you feel it is imperative, Kazuki, I respect you justification to tell them." Konjyoyaki then quickly turned his head back to the front. Kazuki regarded the Konoha gennin once again and spoke with renewed resolve.

"You see, it all started when sensei was very young. I don't know the whole story, but from what I understand, his mother was a foreigner from distant lands. His father had three children with her, Konjyoyaki being the middle child. At the age of seven, his youngest brother was born, his sister having moved out a few years prior. Now, over the years, his father started acting strange, but was a veteran shinobi, so no one thought anything of it. One night he burned down their house after brutally murdering his wife, Konjyoyaki barly escaped the blaze with his life. That same day, his sister died of unrelated causes. Alone, he convinced himself that his brother somehow survived, just to keep him going. He looks for any information that may lead him to his brother."

While the kids were busy sympathizing for him, even Naruto had his views of the bastard changed, Konjyoyaki scowled at the mention of his father. Something more happened that night that no one else knew about. As he stared at his hand, he clenched it into a fist until his palm bled. It soon grew numb as he swore. _"I will find you father. And when I do, I will enjoy destroying you with this _gift_ you gave me." _And with that, he tuned everything else out. They were almost there.

When they finally arrived at the camp, Naruto saw Haku and Sakura in much the same situation he and Sasuke had been in. guarding them was a long red-haired girl and a girl with much shorter blue-hair. Both quickly got into a defensive stance when they heard several people drop from the trees.

They eased their guards a bit when they saw their brother, but they quickly rose again when they noticed the two unknown individuals and the absence of Konjyoyaki. Atsuko voiced her concern. "Where's Sensei, Kazuki?" the purple haired boy peered behind him only to see that, yes, Konjyoyaki had vanished. He turned to his sisters.

"He was just here. We are to free those two." He indicated to the girls tied to the tree. Atsuko snorted.

"Yeah, right. Then why wouldn't he be here to tell us himself?" during all this, Emi remained where she was, unsure of what she should do.

Kazuki was growing tired of his sister's constant defiance, and voiced as much. "Atsuko, stand down. I am the leader of this team and, as such, am the one who makes decisions in Sensei's absence."

"Pft, since when are you team leader? I didn't elect you."

"That's because it's a matter of skill, not democracy. Keep this up and I will once again prove this. Now, I will give you one more warning. Stand down." Through his annoyance, Kazuki had somehow managed to sound calm.

Naruto was tired of waiting, especially since his goal was a few meters in front of him. He could also tell things where going down hill fast. He nervously fingered his wakizashi. Sasuke saw this and was also preparing should things get ugly, holding some shurikan. All the while, Emi eyed everything, trying to determine how to act.

Atsuko was also becoming angered that her brother was defying their sensei, in her mind. Trying to tell her he was in charge. She only took orders from Sensei. So she charged, swiping her hand across her arm, allowing a burst of smoke to appear. She quickly emerged, a nodachi in her hands. And she attacked. But it wasn't Kazuki she was after. No instead she went for Naruto.

The blonde quickly brought up his weapon, but lost his grip on it to his opponent's superior strength. He jumped back and did a quick survey. It seemed as if all the others were frozen in place, just watching. His attention was drawn back to his fight as a burning sensation made its way across his chest and a veil of red momentarily cut off his vision. He grasped at his wound as he dodged another attack.

He was running on his last legs from this battle. His chest still hurt from when Konjyoyaki impaled him, which was unusual. His thought was once again cut off as he bent back to save his neck. This just angered Atsuko more. So far, she had only managed to hit him once, and she was forced to watch as it quickly healed back up again.

She was then struck with a devilish idea, as a sick grin made it's way to her mouth. She quickly spun around and formed hand seals at a lightning fast pace, shouting, "Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu!" however, she didn't blow out her attack. Instead, her blade seemed to shimmer as she swung it, launching fireballs at double the speed and size they would normally be. They were headed straight for Haku.

Naruto's eyes widened at seeing this and he quickly rushed for her. Haku's eyes also widened before she closed them tight, helpless against it all. She thought one last thing as the flaming balls of death approached. _' I'm sorry, Naruto.' _Then she felt a terrible warmth. When she felt nothing else, she opened her eyes, only for them to widen as she saw a steaming Naruto, his cloak nothing but ashes and his bloody, badly torn undershirt clearly visible, standing in a defensive position, protecting her.

"Leave Haku-chan out of this." Naruto said in a deadly voice, scorched rather badly. Most had their eyes wide at the fact he was still conscious, let alone standing. He put his hands together and shouted, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" and out popped around fifty blondes.

They were quickly dispelled as a heavy, cold gust made its way throughout the camp, forcing every one to their knees. Sakura and Haku soon found themselves free and on the ground from the pressure. A voice announced from the middle of the camp. "That will be enough, Atsuko." Konjyoyaki stood there, a squirming brown sack slung over his shoulder. "Now get up, we have much to discuss." And with that, they all just seemed to disappear.

Team 7 was left at the camp, silent. Sasuke was the first to break the ice. "I will never understand that man."

It was later in the forest when Konjyoyaki appeared. He waited a few moments with his sack when Taiki emerged from the tree line. He quickly handed the sack over. "You know what to do." He allowed Taiki to get a hold of his arm and he was soon looking at a mirror image of himself he just got a nod before his double sped off into the woods. Konjyoyaki then regrouped with his team.

It had been a few days since Team 7 had arrived at the tower. After being greeted by Zabuza who emerged from the scrolls, they had made their way up to a room. The first thing Naruto did was get him and Haku some alone time so he could explain that what he did was mostly in defense. He apologized for being so ruthless, but said it was just the way he was.

Haku also apologized, both for thinking he was a monster and for thinking that life could be peaceful in a shinobi's life. In the end, they forgave each other for the most part. Things were still a bit shaky, but it wasn't as bad as before. And now they could try to repair the damage.

The team was standing in the middle of a small ring with several other teams on both sides. They noticed the Konoha rookies and two veterans, the Oto team, Gaara's team, and for some reason, Konjyoyaki's team. Before they could make any form of protest, the Hokage appeared.

He went into a spiel about how the whole point of this was to simulate war and promote peace. Naruto thought the old man was full of shit. Just as he was about to go on to explain the rules, a rather pale and sickly man appeared. He whispered something in the Hokage's ear and then approached. "Hello. I am Gekko Hayate, and I will be your protector for this stage of the Exams. The rules are simple." He paused here to cough a bit. More than one person thought, _'What is this guy doing here?'_ "First off, you will be individuals from now on, no longer bound by a team. In one on one matches, you will fight until one of you forfeits or I call the match. If it comes to it, you may be forced to kill your opponent. If fighting continues after I call a fight, you will be disqualified. If any of you feel you are not up to it, I will now give you a chance to pull out."

Kabuto was the only one to raise his hand. He received a nod and made his way to the stands where the sensei's stood. The Hokage had his own booth where he sat along with the previous protectors.

Hayate nodded. "Good, if there are no others, we will now begin the third stage of the Exams. If you would please turn your attention to the board." The giant electronic board flashed through names before finally landing on two. "The first match will be between Inuzuka Kiba and Rock Lee. Would all other competitors leave the arena at this time."

So, Team 7 made their way to Kakashi, who was reading his porn, and Zabuza, who had apparently never left and was reading over the silver-haired man's shoulder, and proceeded to watch the match. "Twenty-thousand yen says the little dog gets whipped." Said Naruto. He was met with a voice that held much bravado.

"Ahh, it is good to see someone betting in Lee's favor, even though betting is so unyouthful!" the team turned to see a man much like the strange boy in the arena, green spandex and all. His team consisted of a bun haired girl and a pale-eyed Hyuuga, who was the one to speak.

"Why are we over here, Gai-sensei?" the man just laughed

"Why, to see my youthful rival and his team, of course!"

Kakashi looked up, as if just noticing something, and said, "You say something, Gai?" the spandex clad man just had mini-rivers flowing down his eyes as he yelled something no one else paid attention to. During some time, Konjyoyaki appeared next to Zabuza, which made the man jump in surprise. This quickly turned to anger as he confronted the man.

"What are you doing here?" Zabuza pointed an accusing finger at him.

"Well, I'm here to hopefully see my team, which was to lazy to partake in any other Exam, advance. You remember them, don't you, Zabuza?" and there was his team, looking, slightly ashamed at still being gennin, though Atsuko seemed more reserved than that, even.

The girl from Gai's team looked up at hearing the name "Zabuza" and what she saw nearly made her heart stop. She then rushed over to him. "Holy shit! You're Momochi Zabuza, right? I'm Tenten! Could I, by chance, get an autograph?!?" the girl talked in a hurry, and the man just looked on stupidly as a pen and paper was thrust into his face. As he signed the paper, the girl squealed and seemingly floated back over to her team, a dreamy smile plastered on her face. Needless to say, everyone sweat dropped.

Uhh, let's get onto the match. Oops, looks like Kiba was already being carried out on a stretcher. Lee hadn't even broken a sweat. He approached the stands as the next match was announced. Sabaku no Kankuro vs. Sai.

It was interesting right off the back. Sai apparently had the ability to turn his ink drawings into physical manifestations, and used this to create several ink lions to attack Kankuro. He did well enough at fending them off, until one hit his face with a claw. His face splintered, and it turned out Kankuro was a puppet, the real one emerging from the bundle on its back.

Controlling it with chakra strings, Kankuro had the puppet use an assortment of poisoned weaponry, which had no effect on the ink. When his puppet finally shattered, he was forced to withdraw, or risk serious harm to himself.

Aburame Shino and one of Kabuto's teammates, Aikido or something of the sort, followed that match. Either way, Aikido quickly grabbed hold of Shino, stating he could absorb chakra through touch. His loss, because 'Shino' had been a Mushi Bunshin, and the bugs quickly absorbed enough chakra for Aikido to go unconscious, turning his strategy against him.

Kabuto's other teammate and Gaara succeeded this. It ended quickly enough with the rubber man being splattered all over the wall, via Sabaku Kyuu. After the walls were cleaned, an interesting match finally happened.

"The next match will be Tsubasa Atsuko and Sabaku no Temari! Haijme!" announced Hayate as he jumped out of the way of the kunoichi and launched into a coughing fit. And for the first time that day, Atsuko looked happy.

As soon as they protector jumped away, each kunoichi drew their respective weapons. Temari had a cocky smirk on her face. "I'll give you one chance. Forfeit, or I will make you."

Atsuko growled at this. "Fuck you, bitch!"

Temari grew a twitch on her forehead at this and retaliated. "What did you call me, you whore?!?"

"Shut up, you rug muncher!"

"Cunt!"

"Slut!"

"Dyke!"

This continued for several minute as the kunoichi threw every insult they knew at each other, leaving both Kazuki and Kankuro to groan at their sisters' antics. Everyone else was just disturbed at the creativity that was being used. _'My god,' _thought Hiruzen, _'If there was half as much creativity used in jutsu making, Orochimaru would need Centuries just to _learn _them all.'_

Temari was the first to crack as she whipped open her fan and shouted, "Kamaitachi!" gashes appeared on the floor and walls of the ring as the strong wind created a wave of destruction towards the redhead.

Atsuko smirked and preformed several hand seals before swinging her sword and announcing, "Goukakyuu no Jutsu!" the giant fireball emerged from the nodachi and made its way to Temari, making her technique null void as it was used as fuel. It impacted her fan, leaving just a metal husk and her hands burnt. Atsuko couldn't help but gloat. "Heh, not so cocky now, are you? You see, back in Kiri, our clan is regarded as some of the best blacksmiths, even making three of the seven blades for the swords men. The blades me and my siblings use can be used as a conduit for our chakras, allowing us to use our elemental affinities with them and use jutsus both double the strength and speed it would normally be with no extra cost to us. Since my affinity if Katon, and yours is obviously Futon, you never stood a chance. Call the match, protector, she can't use her hands."

Hayate, seeing Temari's state, nodded his head and announced Atsuko the winner. In the stands, Kazuki was livid. "Yeah, sure, just announce our fucking techniques to the world. Let them know what we can do. Fucking idiot." He was calmed when Konjyoyaki placed a hand on his shoulder.

The next few matches were rather mundane. Zaku and Ino, with the blonde girl forfeiting after nearly being hit by a Zankyokukuuha. Emi and Sakura, who still wasn't experienced enough, fought, with the red-eyed girl using a Suiton jutsu and winning. Neji dispatched Chouji effortlessly, but graciously helped the boy afterwards in a show of respect (1). Tenten was defeated Kazuki, who created a chain of electricity through her weapons and shocked her.

Haku trapped Kin in her Makyou Hyoushou, followed by using Sensatsu Suishou to disable her. Naruto noticed Konjyoyaki almost seemed to swell with pride. Dosu was defeated by Sasuke's taijutsu skills and Katon jutsu. Finally, it was Naruto's turn. He hoped eagerly into the ring and met Shikamaru in the middle, who let out a huge yawn.

"Final match! Uzumaki Naruto and Nara Shikamaru! Haijme!" as soon as Hayate jumped back, Naruto drew up his blade and got into a stance. He watched curiously as his opponent slowly rose his hand.

'_What is he doing?'_ Naruto thought. What happened next caused Naruto, along with half the audience, to face fault.

"I concede. He is way above my skill level." Said Shikamaru in a lazy manner as he returned to the stands. Hayate nodded.

"Winner: Uzumaki Naruto. Will the winners go over to Ibiki-san for their next set of instructions." And so there the winners went, where they found the scarred man holding a box. He told them to each pull a number. After that was done, he displayed a chart, showing the matches that would happen in a month's time. Neji and Gaara. Emi and Sai. Shino and Zaku. Lee and Atsuko. Kazuki and Haku. Naruto and Sasuke. Everyone was then dismissed to train.

As Sasuke was walking home, he never noticed the presence that seemed to be following him. He suddenly felt a sharp pain in his neck before it turned into a burning that affected his whole body. The last thing he heard was a sickly sweet voice saying, "You will seek me out for power, Sasuke-kun. Power to attain your goal. Remember the name Orochimaru. Kukuku." Before he was taken into blissful unconsciousness.

It was in the forest in which 'Junko' and 'Konjyoyaki' met. Konjyoyaki dumped the sack before Junko, reveling 'Naruto'. "Hmm, good job, Konjyoyaki. Here's the info I promised. Now, I must get him back to Ame." After handing Konjyoyaki a scroll, Junko threw Naruto over his shoulder and was about to jump off.

It was then that he felt a stabbing pain in his chest. He looked down just to see an ice blade disintegrate. He heard one last thing before he died. "Consider this my resignation."

In Ame, in a high tower, Nagato opened his eyes. Konan was quick to approach him. "Nagato, what's wrong?"

"Konjyoyaki betrayed us." He said while coughing up blood.

"What do we do?"

"Send Kisame and Itachi to Konoha. I hear Orochimaru is going to launch an invasion. We will get the Kyuubi."

In Kiri, Yagura opened his eyes from meditation and held his head in pain. "This is not good. We need to prepare."

'_**If you think you can change anything, your wrong. You will not save Konjyoyaki.'**_

'Maybe not, but at least I can try. I also have plans, you know.' And so he just stared out the window as he plotted.

Damn. Yeah, sorry if this wasn't up to par, I have no excuse. Next time, Naruto has a minor run in with Jiraiya, Sasuke wakes up, and the finals start.

(1). Neji still has a father, thus, he does not blame his clan for anything, hence, he grew up rather graciously, therefore, he is not a little emo MOFO.

Wow, what a twist. Ehh, I needed something to mix things up. Whatever. Merry Shitmas and Jew week. Oh, and that other week. Just stay tuned, damn it. I feel as if I'm forgetting something. Oh well.


	12. Begining of the End

Yo, this chapters a bit early, but whatever. I'm starting to feel my notes go largely unnoticed. Hmm, well, enjoy the fruits of my labor.

xxxxx

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I did not receive the rights to any anime franchises for Shitmas. As a consolation I got Assassin's Creed 2 and Left 4 Dead 2, though. And coffee. Lots and lots of coffee. I guess that makes up for it.

xxxxx

Chapter 12: The Beginning of the End

Naruto was in a conundrum. His best friend was currently in the hospital, his girlfriend had gone to a secluded area for training, and, to top it all off, there was a very realistic chance that he may have to fight both of them in the upcoming finals.

Naruto sighed and rubbed his head. What the hell was he supposed to do? _**'Calm down. You must also worry about Gaara. You need to train your control over my essence if you wish to defeat him.'**_

'_Pfft, have more faith in me. I've barely used half my skills since I got here.'_

'_**That may be so, but I sense trouble brewing on the horizon. Heed my warning.'**_

'_Whatever' _Naruto then tuned the Bijuu out and went to the onsen to clear his mind. As soon as he eased into the water, he felt all then tension in his body get expelled from him. He closed his eyes and sunk further in, until only his nose and above was left out.

Suddenly, he heard a giggle. His eyes snapped open; he could have sworn he was the only one here. He sat up as he surveyed his surroundings. He was about to pass it off as a result of his stressed mind when he heard it again. It sounded vaguely familiar. He rose fully from the water, dressed only in a towel, and scanned the area, fully extending his senses.

There it was, from outside. His eyes narrowed in distaste. _'Pervert.'_ He thought angrily as he slowly stalked to the door, intent on ridding this area of the annoying menace. He threw the door open as he quickly yet stealthily traveled to the source. When he got there, he was thrown off guard by the man's appearance.

Long, spiky white hair, red and green clothing, a horned hitai-ate with a kanji for oil on it, red kabuki paint going from his eyes down his cheeks. He sat atop a giant red toad as he looked into a hole in the bamboo fence separating the women's section from the outside world and scribbled something down in a notepad, giggling perversely.

Naruto clenched his fist in rage as he overcame his shock and let his chakra free as he charged up a technique.

xxxxx

Jiraiya looked up from his peeking as he felt a large spike in killing intent. He turned his heard around only to have to quickly dodge to the left, seeing a swirling blue ball of chakra aimed at his head. It connected with the wall and exploded in a cloud of dust with a shout of "Rasengan!" Jiraiya blanched at that and thought '_Oh shit!' _before he received a left hook to the face, sending him sprawling to the ground.

He was hauled up by the front of his shirt and was met by a face he was hoping he would never see again. "You never did answer my question all those years ago, what do you know about my parents?"

Jiraiya was about to answer with a clever response, when both he and Naruto felt a wave of killer intent wash over them. Jiraiya found himself on his own two feet as they both turned around. There was an army of women, clad only in towels, murderous looks on all their faces. "Get them!" one shouted as they charged.

"Naruto," Jiraiya said in a rushed and frightened voice, "If there was ever one thing I wanted you to know, it was that a real man knows when it's time to RUN LIKE A LITTLE BITCH!" and with that, both fled for their lives.

After a few miles, they both tumbled to the ground, panting and out of breath. After taking in a few giant gulps of air, Naruto turned to where he expected Jiraiya to be, only to see an empty space. He got back to his feet and let out an enraged cry to the sky. "DAMN IT!"

xxxxx

In Sasuke's hospital room, Jiraiya suddenly appeared. He was met by both Kakashi and Hiruzen, who questioned him about his disheveled appearance. "What happened, Jiraiya?"

He shook his head. "It doesn't matter. After this, I need to leave."

"Why?"

Now, Jiraiya was getting annoyed. "Because, unless you want me to reveal all of Uzumaki's secrets to him, I don't really have a choice."

Now, Kakashi was confused. "How do you know Naruto?"

"I met him a couple years back. He was looking for someone who might be willing to train him. I immediately jumped at the chance. I'm telling you, that kid's a prodigy. He says he wants a challenge, I teach him Rasengan. He mastered it in a fucking month!

But then, I let it slip that I knew his parents and he grew furious. Now, he wants me dead. And he may be able to do it, something's not right with him."

Before either one could ask what he meant, a scream reminded everyone why he was here. Jiraiya walked over to the raven-haired youth and inspected his shoulder. He pulled a couple of seals out of his pocket and leafed through them.

"This is definitely Orochimaru's work. Sorry I can't help you with that." He finally found the right one and slapped it on his shoulder. Going through a couple of hand seals, he finally clapped his hands together and shouted, "Fuuin!" mini-seals snaked around the original as the boy screamed in pain. He soon fell unconscious. "You need to train him on control, Kakashi." And without even a goodbye, Jiraiya left through the window.

xxxxx

It was night, and a full moon illuminated the village as Konjyoyaki stalked the rooftops and alleys, looking for anything to ease himself of his boredom. Sure, he could train his team into the ground, but that stopped being fun after… okay, it was always enjoyable, but he had decided to give them a break. He had just reunited with them, after all.

It was soon after that something caught his eye. He quickly rushed in that direction and, low and behold, there was Kabuto conversing with the Suna team's sensei. He hid behind a building and eavesdropped on them. "How are the preparations for the invasion going, Baki-san?"

"They are going swimmingly. The Kazekage is fully on board with Orochimaru."

"Good. I will inform him of this. You remember the plan, correct?"

"Of course. At some point during the finals, you will initiate a genjutsu that will put most people into a state of unconsciousness. Then, disguised Suna troops in the crowd will start attacking. Meanwhile, Oto troops will be outside the wall, busy on summoning snakes to destroy the walls, where a reserve will storm in. Konoha will be wiped off the face of the map, and both Oto and Suna will gain great power."

Kabuto nodded. "Excellent. Now, would you mind getting rid of our little fly on the wall?" and with that, he jumped off into the night. Konjyoyaki tensed slightly. It was impossible for them to sense him, right? He relaxed a bit when he saw Hayate jump out from behind a wall.

The sick man drew a sword and attacked with a flurry, appearing in multiple places at once, catching his opponent of guard. Unfortunately, his sword was stopped by the flak jacket. Konjyoyaki didn't pay attention to the words that were spoken next, he was more focused on the figure hiding in the shadows across the way. Just as Baki was to strike the final blow, the figure sprung into action, snatching up Hayate as a blade of wind struck down where he was.

The figure held a hand to Hayate's mouth as the shinobi from Suna said something about him being pathetic, before disappearing. The figure let go of Hayate as he spun around and drew his sword, only to stare in shock at the figure.

"Taiki?" he asked in disbelief. He received a nod.

"Yes, Hayate, it is I."

"I thought you had died on that mission all those years ago?" he said, as if everything he knew was a lie.

"This is not important right now, Hayate, there is the matter of what you have just learned."

"What do you mean it's not important?!?" he asked in rage, "All those year ago, I blamed myself for getting you killed. But I suppose you are right, I need to tell the Hokage of this." Just as he was about to leap away, Taiki drew a knife and stabbed him in the liver. He quickly fell and stared up at Taiki with a pain-filled questioning look.

Taiki wiped his blade off and spoke in a calm voice, "Sorry, but alerting the Hokage of this would alert Danzou, which in turn runs the risk of alerting someone who could put the pieces together. Besides, your more useful dead."

"Your not Taiki." Those were the last words Hayate spoke as he bled out. As Konjyoyaki left, he thought a couple of things. What was wrong with Taiki, and what would be the consequences of trusting someone who thought they knew as much as he did? He shook his head, he had to finish a mission that was nearly ten-years overdue.

xxxxx

The day of the finals had finally arrived. The stands were packed with thousands of eager spectators, all of whom wanting to see kids beat the shit out of each other. News of Hayate's death had spread like wildfire, despite the village's best attempts to keep it in the closet.

The finalists stood in a line in front of the ne protector, someone by the name of Genma. Naruto was apprehensive, both because he had to fight Sasuke and because of a nagging feeling at the back of his head. He shook it off as Genma announced that the first match was about to begin, and asked for everyone besides Neji and Gaara to proceed to the competitors' booth.

He mindlessly walked to the stands. Gaara was another problem he was bound to deal with at some point, and, quite frankly, he thought gaara was a nut job. He also couldn't help but worry just a bit for Haku. He knew she could hold her own, but it was natural to fear for her safety. She wasn't immortal, after all. He shook his head of these thoughts and just watched the match in silence.

xxxxx

Neji stood across from Gaara, both with passive gazes as they stared at one another, patiently waiting for the fight to begin. He wasn't about to admit it, but Neji was just slightly scarred. He steeled his resolve and prepared for the worst.

"Are both combatants ready?" asked the senbon chewing protector. As he received a nod from both, he brought his hand down with a shout of "Haijme!" and jumped back to a safe distance.

Gaara sent a wave of sand at his foe, which Neji cut through with the aid of chakra infused strikes. However, the sand just kept coming, and no matter how little chakra this took with his control, constant use was ill advisable.

The Hyuuga did a quick backwards summersault, just as the sand came crashing down on the spot he was in moments before. Neji then charged, dodging the sand that was sent at him from various directions. When he finally got close enough, he shouted out, "Hakke Rokujuuyonshou!" the chakra infused hands hit hard and fast, but Gaara made no move to block, his sand doing all the work.

However, be it a stroke of luck or something else, one of Neji's hits finally made it through, along with the rest. At the end, Gaara was sent flying across the ring. Panting, Neji watched as the redhead got back up, pieces of sand falling from him, as he stood there, unharmed.

Gaara sent his hand out, with a shout of "Sabaku Kyuu!" Neji was trapped, hovering above the ring in a giant ball of sand, only his head left unexposed. "Any last words?"

"Kaiten!" A rotating ball of chakra then surrounded Neji, sending the sand flying and releasing him. Everyone in the Hyuuga section was speechless at the display, his father proud. Before anything else could be done, Neji admitted defeat, saying his reserves were taxed as it was. Gaara was announced the winner as they both returned to the booth, Gaara I a shunshin, and Neji walking.

Sai and Emi both came down into the ring, ready for a challenge. As soon as the hand came down, Sai jumped back and drew as fast as he could. Soon, ink lions came to life and charged at the blue-haired girl. She quickly rushed through hand seals and, after a burst of smoke, revealed a simple looking katana. She quickly went through more seals and shouted, "Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu!"

From her blade came a dragon composed of water. It quickly rushed at the animated ink beasts and caused them to disintegrate and fall apart. Sai, seeing this, decided on a new approach.

Forming his own seals, he shouted, "Sumi Gasumi no Jutsu!" soon, a haze of ink covered the field, obscuring Emi's and the audiences view. The girl was forced to spin around quickly to block a stab from Sai's tanto.

After blocking a few more blows, Emi found the time to perform another jutsu. After a call of, "Suiton: Suihashu no Jutsu!" her blade let forth a continuous stream of water, dissolving the shroud. She almost wished she hadn't.

Before her was at least fifty Sais, all ready to rush her. "This is my Sumi Bunshin. Give up, you don't stand a chance." Said the boy in an emotionless tone.

Emi was in trouble and she knew it. She knew only one technique that could take out this many enemies at once. She gulped and quickly preformed the seals as the clones charged. She finally reached the end and called out "Suiton: Daisuirou no Jutsu!" from her katana came a large ball of water, which only grew in size as it was launched at the clones.

It grew large enough until it encompassed them all. Once it did, it began growing smaller as all but one of the Sais dissolved. Soon it was only him in the water prison, and he was released as soon as he fell unconscious. Tiredly, Emi returned to the booth as she was announced the winner and paramedics rushed to the pale boy's aid.

The next fight was rather boring, as Zaku launched Zankuuha one after the other at the stoic boy, who either dodged or was a Mushi Bunshin. "Stay still, damn it!" the Oto-nin finally shouted after his twentieth attack. He was obviously tired where as Shino was as fresh as a daisy.

"If that is what you wish." Shino stood there as Zaku prepared to launch another attack. Smirking, Zaku raised both arms and yelled, "Zankyokukuuha!" only to yell in pain as both of his arms flew off. He fell to his knees as Shino approached him. "W-w-what d-did y-y-y-you d-d-do?!?" he yelled in rage in pain.

"I simply blocked the wholes in your palms with my insects, it was you who blew off your arms." Shino said in a way that sounded like he was talking about the weather. He began to walk away before he called over his shoulder. "Next time, don't assume your opponent will just let you hit them, if there is one for you." And so Shino was announced the winner, paramedics carted away Zaku, and everybody learned not to make a stupid request to an Aburame.

Next up was Atsuko and Lee. The boy in the spandex tried his hardest, going so far as to open several celestial gates. But, he was no match for the Katon jutsu Atsuko sent his way. In the end, she won, but was now low on chakra.

And now it was time for the battle that filled Naruto with the most apprehension, Haku and Kazuki. The two met in the center of the ring just waiting for the signal. Both jumped back once they heard it.

Haku went through the seals for a jutsu swiftly and shouted, "Hyoton: Kokuryuu Boufuusetsu no Jutsu!" quickly sending her fist foreword. Her fist expelled a black dragon made of ice, and it was headed right for Kazuki, who stared on unperturbed. It was a few centimeters in front of his face when he seemingly reappeared two feet from the left of his original position. He then started a slow approach.

Haku looked panicked as she tried again and again, but it was futile, the wall behind her opponent full of holes and on the verge of crumbling. Kazuki was now a few feet in front of her, and she grinned. Performing the needed seals, she called "Hyoton: Makyou Hyoushou no Jutsu!"

The ice mirrors sprung up in front of the purple-haired boy, who stopped in his tracks. Haku appeared in all of the mirrors, surrounding him. He then mused to himself, "Hmm, so, you confuse your opponent by casting unbreakable mirrors that reflect your image, making it unknown from where you attack from. Because the mirrors are cast of chakra, it is nearly impossible for one to detect the real you. But something like this must really take a toll on your chakra." Although he didn't receive an answer, the beads of sweat building on Haku's brow were all he needed. "There's also a fatal flaw. How do you defend against an attack that comes from all directions?"

He went through seals, Haku tensing should she need to bail out. In the stands, Kakashi was confused. He recognized the seals, along with Zabuza. _'That's strange. It isn't an attack jutsu, and I doubt that the supplementary effects will aid him in escaping.' _He stretched out his senses, trying to pick up _something_. Then, he felt it. Static. His eyes widened as he relized how Kazuki was able to move so fast. '_So, he was augmenting his muscles and neurons with electricity, increasing brain function and reaction time. But, if he finishes that jutsu, the residual energy could prove powerful. This is bad news for Haku.' _He turned to Zabuza to tell him, but was stopped.

"I know. A member of the swordsman used to do something similar." He said in a grave voice.

Kakashi turned back to the fight just as the seals were finished. "So, what do we do?"

"Well, luckily that's just a bastardized version, so we hope that it doesn't do to much damage, and that Naruto doesn't flip shit." He said in a deadpan.

"Kirigakure no Jutsu!" the water vapor quickly spread through his encampment, surrounding it. "Sleep tight, Haku-san." Haku was confused. What would this do? Suddenly, she felt her muscles clamp violently and she screamed. She soon collapsed as the mist faded.

"Winner, Tsubasa Kazuki!" Genma announced as Naruto ran to the field, next to Haku, he stroked her face, before paramedics forced him away. He turned to Kazuki.

"You bastard. I'll sacrifice you." He growled out.

"Good. Hold on to that anger. You'll need it to defeat gaara. If you don't, much worse will happen." He then retreated to the booth. The crowd then cheered as Sasuke showed up.

"Sasuke let me win. I need to make that bastard pay."

Sasuke settled into a stance. "I can't just let you win, Naruto. You may be my friend, but I have aspirations, too. Show me your conviction to your goal." And so, the fight started.

Sasuke utilized a Hosenka no Jutsu and drew a kunai, blocking the wakizashi aimed at his face. He then brought up his feet and kicked of Naruto's chest, who regained balance and skidded to a stop. He made a few clones and they all perused Sasuke.

In the stands, Gai approached Kakashi. "Ahh, isn't it lovely to see such a wondrous display of youth in the form of a spar, even if it is during a time where rank is decided! I must commend you on the excellent training of your students!"

Kakashi shook his head as Zabuza looked at the, in his mind at least, jolly gay giant, still not used to his sight. "If only it was that simple, Gai. I fear this is more than a friendly spar. Sasuke is doing it to prove himself, and Naruto's doing it for revenge."

Gai's demeanor became more serious, making Zabuza wonder if this guy was bi-polar. "Are you sure?"

"No, but I suppose we have to wait and see."

Sasuke activated his Sharingan, barely dodging the slashes that came his way. Then, he saw an opening. Acting on instinct, he delivered a heavy blow to one of the Naruto's chest. It appeared this was the real one, because as he coughed up blood, the clones dispelled.

Sasuke smirked before examining his arm. There was a slight scratch, but it meant nothing to him. He was winning, or so he thought. He was becoming closer to realizing his true goal, but he still needed more power.

Naruto got up, grinning at the sight of fresh blood on his sword. Sure, he would be giving away his secret and injure Sasuke, but he would be forgiven and could pass it off as a bloodline. He got up, only to hear a shrill screaming. _'Weird.'_ He thought. He hadn't even started the ritual yet.

When he got a better look, he saw Sasuke on his knees, clutching his head in pain, a vile chakra surrounding him. There were several reactions in different places. In the Kage booth, Orochimaru, under the guise of the Kazekage, was thinking, _'Shit, am I going to have to retrieve him sooner than expected?'_ besides him, Sarutobi wondering, _'Did Jiraiya fail and bail out early on me?'_ in the stands, Kakashi concluded, _'Damn, I was hoping his will was stronger than this. I thought Naruto would be a good influence on him.'_ in the shadows, Konjyoyaki pondered, _'Was there a change in plans? Damn, I need more time.'_ Others in the crowd were either wondering what the fuck was going on or getting ready to jump the guy next to them.

As dark markings made their way across Sasuke's body like snakes, the Uchiha was in an inner turmoil. _'What is this? It feels so… good. But I know it's not. God, I feel sick.' __**'That's good. Embrace the power! Chase your ambition!' **__'No! You must fight! Keep your humanity intact!'__** 'Heh, what has your humanity ever gained you besides worthless emotions and a dulled urge to do whatever necessary?'**__'We can both feel it. We know we can't trust it, it will only fail us. If you truly care for your ambition, you will not yield.' __**'Accept the power and nothing will stand in the way of your goal!'**__'Retain your humanity and you will still have something when your goal is relized!'_

Sasuke didn't now where the voices were coming from, nor did he care, all he knew was that he was caught in the middle of two voices, both convincing. He eventually started to crawl in one direction and accepted his fate.

In the real world, the power just seemed to implode and vanish as Sasuke slumped over, unconscious. The paramedics rushed over as a hush fell over the crowd. "He's alive!" one of the paramedics announced as most let out a breath they didn't know they held. As Naruto was announced the winner, he wondered what the fuck just happened as he returned to the booth.

Kakashi thought aloud to himself. "I hope Sasuke's alright."

"Dude, what the fuck just happened?!?" asked Zabuza.

"I have no idea, my youthful friend."

Zabuza snapped around. "I wasn't talking to you, damnit! Why the fuck are you still here?!?"

Gai looked at Zabuza in the most serious way he could muster, which was actually quite serious. Zabuza began to sweat. He suddenly face-faulted as Gai broke out into a grin and said, "Because you and I together make for good comic relief!" Kakashi silently scooted away from them and continued to watch the match.

The next two fights went by fast. Emi launched a barrage of Suiton jutsus at Gaara, which proved to slow his sand, if just barely. Deciding it wasn't much of a pro, the blue haired girl forfeited, leaving Gaara displeased, but pleased to know that the final match was soon. Despite Atsuko's attempts to burn all of Shino's bugs, she was soon overcome by a coughing fit. Shino had had a few of his insects flank her and inject her with a toxin. He then stated she only had five minutes to find a cure before cardiac arrest occurred. Needless to say, she quit.

Before Naruto knew it, it was his turn once again. He met Kazuki face to face, and was ready to maim him. What happened next shocked, disappointed, and angered people all at the same time. Before the match had even begun, Kazuki had spoken. "I withdraw myself from the tournament due to my lack of energy." Genma nodded.

"Winner: Uzumaki Naruto. Will Aburame Shino and Sabaku no Gaara join me and Uzumaki Naruto in the ring." As this was said, Naruto shook in rage and clenched his fist until his knuckles were white and his palms bled. As the purpled haired shinobi passed him, he whispered something in his ear. "If you manage to defeat Gaara, I will honor you with a battle. And remember, everything happens for a reason." Kazuki then breezed passed the stunned Naruto as the other two made their way down.

As all of the competitors stood in the ring, Genma made his announcement. "Good people of Konoha, travelers, previous competitors, and foreign shinobi alike, I am pleased to present you the final match of this Exam! It will be a three-way battle between some of our best and brightest gennin! In the end, only on will win. Without further ado, Haijme!" with that, the senbon-chewer jumped back as the crowd screamed in delight.

Shino quickly made his way to Naruto. "Uzumaki-san, if we wish to defeat this opponent, we must work together." The man who wore sunglasses at night requested. It was with much reluctance that Naruto agreed. They jumped apart as Naruto rushed in head long, intent on forming a distraction, as Shino attempted to flank the red head. Naruto was forced to leap and dive away from the waves of sand aimed at him. He looked over to see the Aburame fairing slightly better. Naruto soon got fed up and started to cut down the sand. Unfortunately, his blade wasn't meant for cutting, but stabbing. The sand soon overwhelmed him.

But, his stupidity bread opportunity. Shino managed to attach his insects to Gaara as they started to leach away his chakra, loosening his control on the sand. As Naruto escaped, the remaining sand smacked into Shino. Fortunately for him, it was merely a Mushi Bunshin, the insects integrating with the sand. The sand slowly started to fall apart, loosing the chakra infused into it.

Soon, Gaara started to clutch his head in pain, and some people could feel his chakra rising. His sand gathered around him and trapped him in a ball. Naruto was getting fed up with the guy, quite honestly, and wanted to end this. He charged chakra into his hand and it became a swirling blue ball as he charged at the floating mass of sand.

Most marveled at the sight of one of the Yondaime's famous jutsu. They were also curious as a small object materialized above the sand ball. It turned out to be an eye, and soon spikes started to jet out of the ball, aimed at the Konoha shinobi. Shino was on the evasive as Naruto continued on to his destination, ducking and weaving, but never slowing, the eye following him.

Then, he hit his target. "Rasengan!" he called as the ball started to eat through the sand. It broke through and his hand felt a sticky warmness. All was silent for a bit. Then, everyone heard a howl of pain. Spikes launched, and due to his close proximity, hit Naruto, sending him flying. He hit a tree and slumped as something else came from the ball, smacking Shino into a wall and knocking him unconscious. Naruto rose just in time to see this.

He clutched his right shoulder and saw it was wounded, blood seeping from his grasp. He winced a bit. He stepped in the pool that was forming and drew his symbol, just as Shino was removed. He then looked down at the hand that previously held the jutsu. It was covered in blood, causing him to smirk. "I guess I don't need to dirty my wakizashi just to get blood." He then licked his hand as the audience was captivated by his transformation.

As it finished, he drew his blade, and poised it to stab himself. Most everyone was confused and horrified as he stabbed himself in the gut. They then heard a blood-curdling scream, almost a roar of pain, but it wasn't from Naruto.

The ball burst open to reveal Gaara; his right arm a claw of sand with a tail behind him, clutching his bleeding stomach. The right side of his face was also covered in sand, taking on the appearance of a tan raccoon. He then laughed an insane laugh. He was hit in the face with the claw, causing scratches to appear on Gaara's face, but knocking Naruto out of the pentagram, voiding the ritual.

Gaara chuckled as he approached Naruto's downed form. **"PREPARE TO DIE, UZUMAKI! I WILL HAVE YOUR BLOOD!"** after the insane man spoke, he brought down his arm on Naruto's chest, as an explosion and smoke came from the north, and the audience was launched into chaos.

xxxxx

Well, there's my last chapter of the year. Hope you liked it. Now, some news. Interpret it how you wish. I predict there will be only three chapters left in this part of the saga, bringing the chapter count up to fifteen. The sequel should be about, if not more than, double this. But, fear not. The twists aren't over yet!

Neat chapter will be the invasion, with Kakashi and Gai versus Itachi, Konjyoyaki and Zabuza versus Kisame, Sarutobi versus Orochimaru, and the continuation of Naruto versus Gaara. See ya in '10, bitches!


	13. Effects of War

Hey folks, how's it going? Like I give a fuck, get ready for my first chapter of 2010. Wow, at this rate, I'll be done before March. Give that some thought. Well, let's begin.

xxxxx

Disclaimer: Police with their squad cars surround the steps of the Supreme Court offices, all outfitted in riot gear. Helicopters swoop in the air as sniper teams get into position. On the steps is an unshaven and crazed looking man, holding a gun to someone's head. Someone in a bulletproof vest steps foreword, a megaphone in hand. It crackles as the man begins to speak, "Sir, please put the gun down and let the man go."

"Fuck you, man!" said the perpetrator as he tightened his hold on the hostage, pushing the gun closer to his head. A man approaches the negotiator and whispers in his ear. "Our teams are in position. You have three minutes before we blow his head apart."

The man tries again. "Can you tell me your name, sir? Mine's Greg." He said in a calm and placating tone.

"Y-you can call me Acolyte." Acolyte responded. You could see he was getting anxious as he began fidgeting a bit.

"Well, Acolyte, perhaps we could make a deal?" all was silent for a moment as he thought this over.

"W-well, there is something I would like."

"What would that be, Acolyte?"

"I want people to know that I don't own the Naruto series or any other anime or book franchises." He said in a firm voice. His hold began to loosen on the hostage.

The hostage wearily looked around. He saw a glint in a window of a nearby building. Feeling the grip loosen, he violently ducked down and a resounding boom rang out trough the immediate area as a fifty-caliber bullet made its way through Acolyte's skull. Everyone looked on as the man fell. He somehow said one last thing. "Fuck you, Mike."

The man that was just killed made his way into the shot in a nicely tailored suit. "Hello, my name is Acolyte. You may know me from the commercial you just saw. Did you know studies prove that disclaimers are the leading cause of death amongst us authors, as often as one every five days, due to their repetitiveness driving us into early on-set dementia? This also causes pain to the authors loved ones, the hostage, if they get one, dieing with their loved ones in pain, and your, the viewers', disappointment when this causes a fanfiction to end. Only you can stop the madness by writing a stern letter to this site's supervisor stating that it should be obvious that we don't own shit. (Don't actually do this, wait, are disclaimers required by the site?) Thank you for your time. Now for this chapter's continuation of Bloody Prayer, already in progress."

xxxxx

Chapter Thirteen: The Effects of War

As soon as the explosions began to happen, Kabuto started on the seals for the genjutsu he was supposed to cast. He was about half way done when he was forced to dodge or deal with the rest of the situation without a head. He turned to look at his assailant and was greeted to the sight of Taiki in his Ne uniform. "And who might you be?" asked Kabuto, trying to buy some time to plan.

"Mine name isn't important, what is, however, is that I not allow you to cast that genjutsu of yours." With that, Taiki blazed through his hand seals and created a clone. Kabuto wasn't prepared when the clone turned tail and fled. He did smirk, though.

"So, planning on fetching reinforcements, eh? I'll finish you before they get here." He settled into a stance and activated his chakra scalpels, his hands glowing a greenish hue. Taiki also settled into a stance, drawing a kunai.

"That is not what I made the clone for. Don't worry, it won't interfere, it's more for afterwards." And with that, they charged each other, Taiki remembering why he was doing this.

_Flashback:_

Taiki was wondering around, lost in thought. That was before he felt someone following him. He quickly spun around, only to be thrown into a boulder behind him. He nearly cried out as he felt a couple of ribs crack and was forced to stifle another cry of agony as he felt a pressure on his chest. He looked up through bleary eyes to see the attacker, only to have them widen a moment later.

_His attacker seemed to read his thoughts as he shook his head. "No, you don't know me. But that's not important. I need you to do something. You see, my plans rely on certain things happening over the course of the next month. Seeing as I have other business to attend to, I'm entrusting you to carry out my wishes."_

_Taiki finally got a hold of his voice and spoke. "And what makes you think I'll listen?" he did cry out as he felt the man break another rib._

"_Because, '_Taiki_'," he said the name with as much mocking as he could, "I know what you are, what you want, and that you're just a scarred, little man who can't live as himself. And I can help you." The man pulled something out of his pocket and handed it to thee pained man. When Taiki saw it, his eyes almost popped out of his head. The man smiled at his reaction._

_Taiki had to ask. "What is this?"_

"_That, my associate, is a bundle of fifty-thousand Ryo. There's more where that came from if you help me."_

_Taiki mindlessly nodded, still transfixed on the money he was holding. The man got off his chest and turned away. Just as he was about to leave, Taiki called out, "Wait! What's your name?"_

_The man turned around, his glasses catching the moonlight and glaring his eyes from view. He smirked. "You can call me Mr. N. I'll send you your orders as soon as I need them done. Don't fail me." And with that he was gone._

_Flashback end:_

xxxxx

In the Kage's booth, Orochimaru was growing more and more disgruntled at the lack of a genjutsu. He was now out of his disguise as a purple box surrounded him and Sarutobi, dressed in full combat gear. He smirked as an idiotic ANBU rushed the box, only to ignite in flames the second he made contact. He writhed in pain for a second before he died. Oh well, at least he would get to vent his frustrations on one of the men he hated most.

Orochimaru easily dodged the jutsus the old man sent his way and sent some of his own. Yeah, this would be therapeutic.

xxxxx

Naruto was lying in the middle of the field, his chest totally caved in, blood pooling around him. He could barely breath and his vision was swimming. Being immortal didn't negate the effects of some of the more severe injuries he sustained. But, his mind wasn't on this, nor was it on the transformed, homicidal maniac standing over him. It wasn't on the destruction going on around him, and it wasn't on the one-hundred-foot-long, three-headed snake he could see in the background.

His mind was on a certain, purple-haired bastard. _"That fucker! He knew this shit was gonna' happen. I'm gonna' rip his damn head off and shove it up his fuckin' ass when I get the chance, that cocksucker!" _the blonde slowly got up, shocking Gaara and most any other on-looker. Gaara's shock quickly turned to a mixture of glee and rage, Naruto couldn't tell.

"**You're not dead yet?!? Ahahahahaha! I'm gonna' spill all your blood over the field until you're empty!" **Naruto got another sand claw to the face, the abrasive surface shredding a bit of his face off. He flew right through the wall of the stadium, landing on the outside as rubble covered his legs. He knew his spine was shattered because he could feel nothing. The Kyuubi got to work on it, and then he felt everything.

His already mangled rib cage was now even worse, most just barely there, if at all. He looked over and saw one of his lungs to his left, his arm bent in an unusual manner. He noticed his face was warm and reached a hand up to touch it. When he brought it back, he saw it was almost dyed red.

As his chest closed up, he began to move rubble from his legs and stood up, only to see a tan mass headed for him. He managed to say one thing before a shoulder met his stomach. "Shit."

xxxxx

Back inside the stadium, Kakashi, Gai and Zabuza were keeping busy by defending and escorting civilians out of the stands and away from the enemy shinobi intent on killing them. Gai was fighting off a group of a dozen or so Oto forces, punching, kicking, even head butting them away to keep his group safe. He was just about to be stabbed in the back when Kakashi kicked him in the head, breaking his neck.

Gai spun around, but stopped himself from attacking. ""Oh, thanks for the assist, my friend. Where is Zabuza, though, I thought he was with you?"

"I'm right here." Replied the bandaged man as he defended the group from the rear. They both watched as he swung his blade masterfully, a result from years of practice, taking scores of enemies down at a time. It was shocking when a certain fellow swordsman flew through a wall and hit him, sending both toppling out of the stands, a blue and black blur following them.

Both were about to jump to their aid, when a group of shurikan stopped them. A cold voice caused them to turn around. "Long time no see, Kakashi."

Gai whispered in a shocked voice to his friend. "Isn't that…?"

He was interrupted. "Yes." Kakashi lifted his headband and his Sharingan met their foe's as he addressed him. "What are you doing here, Itachi?"

xxxxx

Konjyoyaki was on the look out for his team. He hadn't told them all the specifications of their assignment due to the fact that he didn't want them to be in danger. All he told them was that when the shit hit the fan, take out as many fuckers as they could and make their way to the highest point in the village. He threw a couple kunai and hit several intermixed Suna and Oto units dead in the head.

He was starting to regret the decision of not telling them everything, hell, even for leaving out more imperative details, when he saw the giant snake barreling through buildings. Even more so when he was forced to duck and incoming blade and felt an all too familiar chakra signature. He then jumped over a sweep kick and caught the fist aimed at his face. He couldn't stop the kick aimed at his mid-section, though, as it sent him back into a building.

He flipped in the air and had his feet catch on its surface, jumping off it and launching himself at the blue-faced man. He formed a blade and went in for a stab, before the blade shimmered shattered not a few inches from his target, leaving him unprepared for the kick to his chest, which sent him flying through a wall and into someone else, cushioning his landing.

He got back up only to find he landed on Zabuza, who got up soon after. "What the hell?" was his response. His answer was a laugh from a third party.

"Man, do you know how long I've been wanting to do that?!?" Zabuza spun around and got a view of the man. He tall, had blue hair and he himself was blue, with what looked like gills on his cheeks. He wore a black cloak with red clouds on it and what looked like a head protector with Kiri's symbol on it, a slash through it.

What really drew his attention was the giant ass, bandaged bundle attached to a handle thrown over the man's shoulder. He could say but one thing. "Kisame? What are you doing here?!?"

"Oi? Hey Zabuza, didn't see ya over there. Either way, I'm gonna' take this traitor out. Feel free to help if ya' want." With that, the shark man charged the smoker, who knew he couldn't defend him self, and was left dodging.

Zabuza watched from the sidelines, an innocent bystander. Here he was, caught in the middle of a tough decision. On one hand, he could help a known traitor, his comrade, or watch as he was struck down by the man he feared the most when he used to be part of the Seven, but was still loyal to some extent. Then again, wasn't Konjyoyaki also loyal? His mind was brought back to a conversation he had a few nights prior.

_Flashback:_

_Zabuza was wondering the lonely and desolate streets of Konoha, his surroundings reflecting just how he had been feeling since Haku had gone to train with her uncle. Had he been pissed when he found the note from her? Hell yes! But, he regretfully relized, he could do nothing about it. Besides, Konjyoyaki could probably train her better than he ever could._

_He looked up at the moon overhead, its glow illuminating the streets in a pale light. He had been here for about two months, and had to admit, it had taken a while to get used to a peaceful life. Well, more peaceful than constantly being hunted down, he still had duties, after all._

_His train of thought was broken when a voice sounded from behind him. "Zabuza, we need to talk."_

_He growled to himself. He knew who it was without even needing to turn around. "What do you want, Konjyoyaki." By the tone of his voice, it was obvious that he was the last person he wanted to talk to._

"_As I have already stated, I believe we need to have a conversation." Konjyoyaki approached him, his voice giving away nothing about his intentions._

_Zabuza spun around to face the, if only a bit, taller man, anger and impatience growing. "Now, why in the hell would I want to talk to you?!? Isn't it enough that I can't openly attack you, now you have to taunt me?!? Get out of my sight!"_

_The orange-eyed man just sighed. "I suppose I deserved that."_

"_Oh, you deserve a hell of a lot more!"_

_He ignored the outburst and continued, as if never interrupted. "But I suppose that is part of why I'm here. I wanted to apologize, Zabuza."_

_Now, Zabuza was shocked. He expected a lot from the man in front of him, but an apology was not on his list. "What?" he asked a few moments later._

"_I know that you viewed me as sort of a brother, and that I betrayed you, but I had my reasons." He paused here, letting the bandaged man absorb the information. "Despite what you may think, the Mizukage is a good man. He was tricked into doing what he did."_

_Although his voice conveyed honesty, Zabuza just couldn't believe him. He looked at the ground and clenched his hands. "Leave me alone."_

"_Wait. There's one more thing. I have reason to believe we're going to be attacked during the Exams. I want you to be prepared and tell those who you think need to know."_

_Zabuza turned his back to the man. One of the people he would have told was Haku, if he believed it. But Haku had probably already been told, and he couldn't trust his old comrade right now. He slowly started to walk away as one more thing left his mouth. "I said leave me alone."_

_Flashback end:_

With all the things going on around Zabuza right now, he was left with a strong conviction that what Konjyoyaki had said the other night was true. Without a second thought, he drew his zanbatou and blocked Kisame's blade. He grinned under his bandages at seeing the shark-man's anger and confusion. "I always did hate you, Hoshigaki." And with that, the three swordsmen separated.

xxxxx

Back in the shadows, Kabuto and Taiki finally met. Kabuto went in for a slash to Taiki's chest, which was blocked. With his other hand, he aimed for the stomach area. Taiki promptly brought up his legs and kicked off Kabuto's chest.

As he flipped in the air, Kabuto tumbled until he eventually landed on his feet. Taiki landed, only for on of his legs to give out and cause him to collapse. Kabuto smirked at seeing this and rushed in.

He didn't expect the blade to go through his shoulder and for his legs to be kicked out from under him. He pulled out the blade and his wound quickly healed. A limping Taiki watched. "Now that's interesting." As fast as he could, he rushed over and grabbed Kabuto.

Before the glasses wearing shinobi knew it, in front of him stood a mirror image of himself, just wearing different clothes. He was shocked now, staring at himself, able to say but one thing. "What are you?"

The other Kabuto just chuckled a bit before replying with a simple answer. "A monster." He brought a chakra scalpel down, and as it hit, the body burst into smoke, reveling a dead Oto shinobi. He looked over to the side, only to see Kabuto making his escape. "Fuck, he's a clever bastard." He just sighed, but went on to complete his next assignment. Calling back his clone, he returned to Taiki's form and headed for the Hokage monument.

xxxxx

Gai and Kakashi were staring down Konoha's most, arguably, infamous criminal. "What are you doing here, Itachi?" asked Kakashi with venom in his voice. The man replied in an emotionless voice.

"I am here because me and my partner have been given the order to eliminate a traitor to our organization." He indicated to where Konjyoyaki and Kisame were fighting, the latter winning. "It is lucky for you that we are restricted to using a set amount of chakra, as not to give ourselves away." The Uchiha drew attention back to himself as he spoke once again. He started to unbutton his cloak.

"Come on Kakashi! We must aid our youthful comrades!" said Gai in his usual manner, albeit more reserved and serious. Just as they were about to jump over the railing again, they were stopped.

"It would appear as if my partner has the situation under control. He also has an old history with him. As such, I will ensure he completes the mission by making sure none interrupt him. If you wish to fight, come at me." Gai and Kakashi looked at one another, nodded, and attacked.

xxxxx

In the ring, Konjyoyaki and Zabuza were both attacking Kisame, though it was obvious Konjyoyaki was at a disadvantage. He could no longer use his ice blades, seeing as they would just be destroyed by Samehada's special ability. It wasn't like he could use many jutsus to begin with, so now he was stuck with using strategy and taijutsu.

"Why are you doing this, Kisame? Don't tell me you still hold a grudge from all those years ago?" Konjyoyaki asked suddenly. The blue man laughed.

"Don't play stupid! You killed one of Pein's bodies, and you're too dangerous to let live, he decided. Now, I get to kill you! Hahaha." He soon jumped back and summoned a wave of water to rush at the two, who were swept up and slammed into a wall. Reaching into his coat pocket, which he was glad was waterproof, Konjyoyaki got another cigarette and lit up, charging in to attack once again, no time to think about what Kisame said, like Zabuza.

"Kirigakure no Jutsu!" Zabuza yelled as mist surrounded the field. He was disappointed when Kisame just cut through the shroud. However, then Konjyoyaki saw it. Despite, he rushed in, ducking under the swing of the sword, he quickly formed a blade and made a stab for Kisame's midsection. He grinned as he was sprayed in blood.

He jumped back, watching as the blade shattered when Samehada absorbed the chakra holding it together. "Grunting in pain, Kisame asked, "How did you do that?" he was holding his wound as blood dripped between his fingers.

"When you cut through Zabuza's mist, I noticed that only the chakra that passed by Samehada was absorbed. It was a theory, but it would appear that Samehada can't stop everything."

Kisame laughed as the other two stood on guard. "Very good! Ha! This fight is fun!" he removed his hand to show that there was no wound, not even a scar. He then rushed the two with more vigor than before.

xxxxx

When Taiki finally reached the monument, he was greeted to the sight of the Tsubasa triplets. They were on guard the moment they saw him, all drawing a weapon. He held up a hand in a placating gesture. "Relax. Konjyoyaki sent me. He is busy at the moment and wants to continue the plan."

The others seemed to relax a bit, as Taiki followed them to the set up. It was a simple fireworks display, ready to go off at any moment. "Do you know why sensei isn't here?" Taiki turned to face the red-eyed girl. "No, I just got a message. Now, let's set this off.

And so, the fireworks launched, halting battle momentarily and sending a message. Meanwhile, Kazuki just stared at the mysterious man. Something just didn't feel right to him. He ignored it for now and decided to confront the man later.

xxxxx

All over the village, shinobi stopped fighting to look up at the display of colours. Even the three-headed snake was wondering what the fuck. That was, until hundreds of shinobi came from seemingly nowhere and attacked. In no time, the snake was destroyed. "Remember, don't harm Konoha shinobi or civilians!" that was the order given by various leaders of the new forces as they helped with the defense of Konoha.

On top of the Kage's booth, Sarutobi was running on the last of his energy while Orochimaru was barly sweating. "Come on, old man, in that all you have?" asked the snake in a taunting voice. They were both taken by surprise when the fireworks went off. What happened next caused Orochimaru to sweat heavily.

Numerous forces started to take out his. Before his eyes, his plans were falling apart. "Looks like your invasion is falling apart." He growled at his sensei's voice, but knew he was right. It was a split second decision when he gave the order.

"Retreat!" the purple box fell as Orochimaru and his body guards left Konoha, many of the Oto shinobi following with Suna, seeing him leave. The Hokage smiled at seeing this and collapsed, the ANBU quickly coming to his aid and transporting him to the hospital.

xxxxx

The fierce battle between the three swordsmen was continuing with vigor, as Kisame was starting to have trouble holding off both Zabuza and Kisame. However, it was only a matter of time until he got a hit in, slashing across Zabuza's chest, blood spurting out like a geyser as the bandaged man collapsed from the pain. "Heh, I suppose we're more evenly matched now." Was the snarky comment from Kisame.

Konjyoyaki just growled at the sight of his fallen comrade. He almost didn't see the blow coming. He dodged, if only barely, but fell victim to the sweep kick aimed at his unprotected shins. He looked up to see the shark-man readying a blow, only for it to be blocked.

All three individuals were shocked by who was blocking the blade. "Why are you being so reckless, Konjyoyaki?" asked the figure.

"Shit." Was all that was said from Kisame, before a black-haired man appeared in the stadium, dressed the same as Kisame.

"These unforeseen circumstances have jeopardized the mission. We must flee." Kisame begrudgingly agreed with the stoic man and the two left. The remaining two swordsmen regarded their savior as both Kakashi and Gai approached them.

"Well, isn't this just a big fuckin' reunion." Said a sarcastic Zabuza, still bleeding on the ground. "I'm actually glad to see you for once, Mizukage-baka."

Xxxxx

After being batted around for awhile, Naruto had finally been hit into the forest, looking like he had just traveled through hell and back, his left arm mangled, with very little skin left on it, and his left leg bent at an unnatural angle. He had virtually been eviscerated, the large gash on his stomach allowing intestines to hang out. If one were following the battle, they would just have to follow the stream of blood from the stadium.

"**Why don't you die? You're pissing me off!" **Gaara had become increasingly crazier as the battle went on, the sand covering him until only his feet were left uncovered. The burning sensation was becoming weaker, as all of the healing was taxing his battered body. Naruto was growing more and more numb as he imitated a rag doll. He just wanted the pain to end.

'**Are you really giving up? Are you so weak that something as trivial as pain is causing you to be this disgraceful to Jashin-sama? You're pitiful.'**

The burning in his skull wasn't helping him concentrate any, as the Kyuubi's words cut through his mind. The worst part was that they were all true. _'What can I do? I can't heal fast enough to be useful. He's too strong._

'**What will happen when he's done with you? He will destroy everything, quite possibly injure your precious girlfriend. What will you do then? There is but one option. Use me.'**

Naruto's eyes widened at this as the hulking creature continued to lumber towards him for another round. _'But how? We've never done it before, we don't know what could happen.'_

'_**I will help you this time, and maybe from now on, you'll head my warnings.'**_ If Naruto thought he was in pain before, now he felt like he was slowly being compressed in the Earth's crust. The potent chakra flattened trees and forced Gaara to the ground as all of his wounds were healed. He rose from the ground as Gaara also attempted to stand.

Naruto walked up to the monster and delivered an earth-shattering blow to the weakened psycho, causing the teen to make a small crater in the ground and sand to go flying, revealing parts of the boy underneath. He then began to stomp on the downed enemy, before restraining himself. There was no telling what would happen if he was killed.

Gaara looked up pitifully, most of the sand gone by now, showing a majority of his face. "How?"

"Because I'll be damned if I let you harm the person I love. Your lucky I don't kill you." This was all that was said as the overpowering chakra dispersed and Naruto walked away.

Gaara's siblings appeared moments later, and, when they inquired what happened, he simply replied, "I had my eyes opened. I'm sorry." The two elders shared a look before continuing on their way. They would ask later.

xxxxx

I hate to end it here, but I can't think of any other way. And yes, I know it sucked, but quite frankly, my head hurts to damn much. Next chapter will be better.

Next time, an important character dies, the aftermath of the invasion, and depending on my mood, I may make next chapter super long to include the finale, since that would be too short by itself, unless I think very hard. Until then…


	14. Aftermath

Well, this is out earlier than anticipated. That can only be good for you guys. I still haven't decided if I'll divide this chapter up to make the ending longer, or just make this chapter the ending, but I think I may go with the former.

Xxxxx

Disclaimer: I don't own it. I never will. Let's get to why you're here.

Xxxxx

Chapter 14: The Aftermath

It was in the forest that Orochimaru found a sluggish and tired Kabuto, and he was pissed. He watched as the medical-nin slightly jumped at the intrusion of the five individuals only to be scarred shitless after seeing who it was. He quickly tried to form a response. "O-orichimaru-sama! I'm sorry, but there is a good rea-…" he was cut off as a punishing blow was delivered to his diaphragm, causing him to be out of breath.

"Kabuto, why have you failed me?" the pale man's voice may have fooled people that he was calm, but hidden underneath the velvet covering were dozens of poison-covered blades, all begging for the blood of the one who made their wielder so irate. Even though it was not directed at them, the four behind him shivered.

"Orochimaru-sama, I apologize, but I encountered interference that caused me to put all my attention on them. He took me by surprise and-…" the glasses-wearing man was once again cut off, this time by a kick that sent him into a tree.

"A single man should not require all your attention to deal with. Because of your lack of involvement, we were forced to retreat when reinforcements arrived. Tell me, how can you fix this?" he was about to strike again when Kabuto held up his hand.

The white-haired man smirked. "Please, Orochimaru-sama. I had a contingency plan implemented just in case of this event. By tomarrow, you will be pleased." Kabuto was picked up by his neck and slammed into a tree, but the smirk never left his face.

Orochimaru came in close and growled into his face. "For your sake, you had better be correct in your assumption." He was then released as Orochimaru turned his back on everyone. "Come. We must make haste if we are to return to base without detection." And so they were off.

xxxxx

It was a few hours later, and the hospital was packed. It was lucky that the Hokage had his own private room. It was here that Yagura stood with Konjyoyaki and several ANBU around the Hokage. "First off, I must thank you, Mizukage-dono. Thanks to your sacrifice, our village was able to fend off the invaders. You are in our debt."

Yagura waved off the praise. "Think nothing of it."

"But how did you get so many people to follow you into battle with the civil war currently going on in your country?"

"Well, not to long ago I began peace talks in my village, explaining that it was a mistake with the purges. They may still not trust me- no, I know they don't trust me completely, so I was hoping we may start an alliance, considering your village is full of Kekai Genkei, to prove what I meant."

The Hokage put on a contemplative look. "Really now? Konjyoyaki, ANBU, could you leave us?"

A coursed, "Hai." Was heard, though it took a nod from Yagura for Konjyoyaki to leave. As the room emptied, the blonde turned to the old man. "Now then, shall we discuss the details?"

xxxxx

As Naruto traversed the crowded hallways of the hospital, he finally reached a specific room. He entered and was met with the sight of a conscious, black-haired girl, who turned to see who entered. Her face lit up when she saw who it was. "Naruto-kun!"

The blonde just walked over to the girl and embraced her. At first, she was shocked, but the reciprocated the action. As he rubbed her back, he quietly whispered in her ear. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" the girl honestly didn't know what he could be apologizing for.

"For being so violent. I never should have mislead you, intentionally or not." His voice was soft, letting Haku know that every word he spoke was true. He continued, "I promise not to maim anyone else, unless they harm you."

"Naruto-kun." Haku broke the embrace, leading Naruto to believe he did something wrong. He was surprised when she planted as kiss on his lips. She then just hugged him, as he slowly wrapped his arms around her again. All seemed right in the world, and for the almost fourteen-year-old, this is all he would ever need.

xxxxx

While the blonde jinchuuriki and his girlfriend thought that life couldn't be any better, that was not the collective mentality throughout the village. Even a few doors down, someone didn't think that. Sasuke was still unconscious, but that didn't mean nothing was happening in his head.

'_What happened?' _ He thought as he took in his surroundings. It appeared as if he was in a void, surrounded by a thick, grey fog.

'_You blacked out.'_ Sasuke whipped his head around only to see… himself. Though he seemed different. His head hurt too much to place it.

'_Who are you?'_

'_It doesn't matter.' _The figure seemed to gaze off into space for a second, before regarding Sasuke again. _'Heads up. We have company._ And with that, the fog slowly seemed to disperse as Sasuke woke up.

His eyes snapped open, and he was met with the sight of a strange man hovering just above him. He was on guard the moment the man spoke. "Uchiha Sasuke?"

The man had green eyes, white hair that was in two braids at the sides of his head, and dressed in a simple kimono. What drew his attention the most though, was the fact that he had two orange dots on his forehead. "Who wants to know?"

The strange man bowed, catching Sasuke off guard. "Forgive me, Sasuke-sama. I have been sent to retrieve you. Please, come with me."

'_What the hell?'_ Sasuke was caught off guard as a voice made itself apparent in his head.

'_I say we listen to him."_

'_You again? What do you want?"_

'_Just listen and do as he asks. You will be rewarded in the end."_

"Sasuke-sama?" he was broke from his musings by the strange man. He obviously didn't have a choice in the matter. So, with a sigh he reluctantly agreed to follow the man.

xxxxx

Back in Haku's room, Naruto was filling her in on what had happened after she had blacked out. It was then that she asked an unexpected question. "So, how's Sasuke?"

Naruto took pause. He didn't know how the black-haired boy was doing, so he answered as such. "I don't know."

"Well, maybe you should go check on him. He is your best friend, after all."

"I suppose." With that, Naruto got up and, after one last kiss, went out into the hallway. He saw a nurse, probably on her rounds, and approached her. "Hey, do you know where Uchiha Sasuke is?"

The nurse looked up. "Hmm. Oh, he should be down the hall, ninth door on the right."

Naruto nodded to her. "Thanks." He continued on his way. As he walked, a burning sensation made it's way into his head.

'_**So, how do you intend to keep your vow to Haku **_**and**_** Jashin-sama at the same time?'**_

'_Jashin-sama doesn't require a sacrifice as long as I use myself regularly. Besides, I will kill those who harm her.'_

'That may be, but be careful. Do not forsake your god. And when are you going to train with my power, exactly?'

'_Don't worry, I'll get around to it.' _with that, he tuned the Bijuu out and continued on his way. When he reached the door to Sasuke's room, he didn't bother knocking, opting just to barge in.

So, he was shocked to see an empty bed and an open window. When he looked out it, he could vaguely see two figures making there way to the horizon. _'What the fuck is going on?'_ so, without a second thought, he proceeded to follow the figures.

xxxxx

Konjyoyaki was wandering around outside the hospital. Why? Well, originally he had been headed over to Zabuza's room. But, he was confronted by a nurse who, after seeing he was smoking, told him to leave. So, now he was searching for what he thought was the right window. Hell, he might even drop in Haku if he had the time. He could start being the uncle he should have been from the start.

He also had a lot to think about. First off, how had the Kiri troops been signaled? He had instructed his team to specifically wait for him, and quite usually, they waited for him. So, what caused them to use the signal? And then there was Taiki. Lately, it seemed as if something was off about him.

However, when he saw Naruto pass over above him, his curiosity became piqued, and he forgot about his questions. _'Hmm, now where his he headed off too?' _and so, off he went. Zabuza was a big boy, he could wait. And so could his questions.

xxxxx

After a few minutes of traveling, the mysterious man had Sasuke stop. By now, they were in the forests surrounding the village. The man turned to him and made a very strange request. He pulled a small, brown pill from his robe and said, "Please swallow this."

Really, seeing no other option, he swallowed the pill. Then, he saw a barrel._ 'What's that for?'_ he didn't get to think for much longer, as soon his body was racked with pain. Before he knew it, he was placed in the barrel, and it was sealed up. All Sasuke was left with was pain and darkness.

xxxxx

Naruto heard a scream, the voice he recognized quite well. "Shit, what the fuck is going on?" he just kept going as fast as he could it to the forest.

xxxxx

Konjyoyaki heard the scream, he saw Naruto's panic, but he still wasn't entirely sure what was going on. Sure, he could stop everything right now, but the longer he kept this going, the more he would learn. He just hoped that he wasn't making a mistake.

xxxxx

After some hours of traveling, the barrel on the white-haired man's back began to shake with a dark power, as thick, foul purple chakra seeped out of it. The man was forced to place the barrel down and back away, or else risk harm to himself. Suddenly, the barrel exploded.

It was at this time that Naruto arrived on the scene. The thick smoke that came with the explosion obscured his vision, but he could see two silhouettes as they began to move once again. He wasn't about to let them.

He rushed into the smoke as it started to disperse, making his presence known with a shout, "Oi! The fuck you think you're goin', assholes?" he could here a voice come from one of the figures.

"Keep going in this direction, Sasuke-sama. I will delay him." one of the figures seemed to nod as they took off. Naruto attempted to go after him, but was stopped by the other man almost bisecting him.

The smoke finally cleared as he got a good look at the white-haired man. In the trees, so did Konjyoyaki, though his attention was drawn to the orange dots on his forehead. Right now, he was beginning to regret letting this go on longer than it should have.

The two charged at each other, becoming entangled in a deadlock. It was unfortunate when the man pulled another white blade from his arm and attacked wit that. Naruto just managed to jump away, but got a deep gash on his leg as a result, cutting tendons and making it useless for a while as it healed.

The man kept up his approach as Naruto sat there. He braced himself, but was surprised when a tall figure landed in front of him, blocking out the sun and making it quite impossible for him to know who it was, the voice gave it away though.

"Continue on, Uzumaki."

"Konjyoyaki?" Naruto asked in a questioning tone, not really expecting the man to help him with much anything that didn't involve Haku or that organization he worked for.

The man grunted as the two broke the deadlock. The man turned his head to him, and in those orange eyes of his, all he saw was a promise of pain if he didn't obey. "I said go!" his eyes and voice then softened a margin as he said one last thing before returning his attention to the white-haired man. "And tell Haku I'm sorry for all the pain I've caused her."

Naruto was confused by the last request, but rushed off in the direction he saw Sasuke head regardless. The green eyes of the man bore into Konjyoyaki's orange. Both got into there own stances.

Konjyoyaki broke the silence. "You are a Kaguya, correct?" it was more of a statement then a question. The man nodded his head.

"Kaguya Kimimaro. And you would be?"

"You may call me Konjyoyaki." And with the pleasantries over, the two resumed their attack.

xxxxx

Naruto had finally caught up to Sasuke. He was grasping at his head, seemingly in pain, in a clearing a few miles away from where the other fight was going on. He slowly approached the younger teen. "What's going on Sasuke? Why did you leave?"

The black-haired teen looked up, pain obvious in his dark eyes. "The voices. They won't stop. They keep pushing me on. Oh god, make them stop!" his voice was heavy and he began to sweat. Suddenly, power seemed to burst from him as he screamed in pain. He seemed to start to transform.

His skin took on a greyish tint, along with his hair. A black cross-like symbol appeared on his face, stretching from the top of his forehead to the bridge of his nose, and from cheek to cheek. The sclera of his eyes turned black as his Sharingan activated, though it was gold instead of crimson. And finally, from his back burst wings, in the shape of giant, webbed hands.

His scream of pain turned into a laugh of insanity. Naruto said one thing as the transformed teen flew towards him. "Why am I always fighting the crazies?"

xxxxx

Back at the hospital, Zabuza was lying in his bed. He was wondering where Konjyoyaki was. He thought they had sort of reconnected, and was expecting him to at least visit. A thought came to mind at that moment. _'Bastard probably got kicked out for smoking.'_

It was at that moment that the last person Zabuza expected to see walked in. Yagura had just finished the negotiation with his counterpart. Sure, he still had a few more meetings to smooth things over, but things were going rather nicely.

He was wondering the halls when he saw a certain swordsman lying in a bed. He decided to drop in. "Hey Zabuza." The Mizukage took a seat at the side of his bed. The injured man looked up.

"Mizukage-san? Why are you here?"

"Eh, I saw the door was open. I decided to drop in, see how you're doing."

"I see." Suddenly, Zabuza had an idea. "Hey, have you seen Konjyoyaki?"

Yagura seemed surprised by the question. "Hmm, I expected him to drop in on you. In that case, he's probably with his team."

"Yeah, probably." Zabuza agreed.

Suddenly, a voice ripped its way through his head._** 'So, you really don't remember what I showed you, do you?'**_

'_What do you mea-…' _suddenly, it came back to him. Yagura quickly stood up, eyes wide. He ran out of the room, the shout of, "Shit!" carrying with him down the hall. Zabuza just wondered what the hell was going on.

xxxxx

"Damn." That was all that Konjyoyaki could say as he fought Kimimaro. The Kaguya was obviously an accomplished kenjutsu specialist, and his Kekai Genkei was better suited for it, while he had more experience and his abilities did help him in the battle.

However, he had just fought Kisame a few hours earlier, and, if it weren't for his control, he would have run out of chakra a while ago. As it was, he was running on his last dregs and he couldn't make his blades as durable as usual.

It was obvious that he wasn't going to win in a straight-out fight. This battle would take more cunning. It was a blow that came at him that may have saved him. With a well-placed Kawarimi no jutsu, he appeared in the forest a few yards from his opponent.

Hiding behind a tree, he worked hard to control his breathing. It didn't help that years of smoking had ruined his lungs rather badly. He quickly found his pack and opened it. He was disappointed to see only a few cigarettes left. _'Shit. I need to end this fight.' _ He searched around in all his pockets, and, in the end, all he found was a chakra pill, a yard of wire, and a few smoke bombs.

In his head, he went through all the information he knew about his opponent. _'Let's see. He can control his bone density and form them into weaponry. All breaks will heal almost immediately. And, from the few hits I got in, he has a layer of bone armor under his skin.'_ Looking back at his items, his mind quickly worked on a plan. As risky as it was, it was his only option.

With a heavy sigh, he swallowed his resolve and the pill and did what he had to do.

xxxxx

'_Fuck!'_ Naruto was once again in pain and healing slowly. The transformed Sasuke stood over him, a maniacal grin on his face. _'Kyuubi, I could use some help.'_

A loud roar made its way through his head. _**'YOU IGNORANT PIECE OF SHIT! DID I **_**NOT**_** ADVISE YOU TO TRAIN?!?'**_

'That fight was only a day ago! How could I effectively train with you in that time frame?!?'

'_**That's not the point! If you had at least tried, I would have been more lenient. You disgust me and are on your own.'**_ With that, the connection was broken, and Naruto's eyes widened as he felt his injuries stop healing. He was then batted across the field.

He lay there, motionless, the pain wracking his body making thinking straight neigh impossible, let alone movement. Sasuke saw this and moved in for the kill. Suddenly, he stopped and clenched his head in pain. "**NO! I WON'T DO IT!"**

'_**WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!? YOU'RE GIVING UP ULTIMATE POWER!'**_

'_Your power isn't ultimate. It's not even yours.' _in his head, a representation of Sasuke approached the transformed one.

'_**FOOL! YOU CAN'T DESTROY ME!'**_

Chains appeared from nowhere and tied up the transformed Sasuke. By now, the normal one was a few feet from him. _'It's my mind and mine alone. I can do anything I want here. I am Kami.' _With that,he thrust his arm through his dark counterparts chest, as it screamed in pain. His body began to dissolve as Sasuke said one last thing before returning to the real world. _'I prefer my humanity, and I'll destroy who created you.'_

Naruto watched as changes began to happen to Sasuke. His complexion returned to normal and seemed to glow with an internal light. His hair turned stark white and his eyes returned to normal, though his Sharingan was a luminescent blue. His wings began to bubble and sprout white feathers.

The transformation lasted for a few seconds before he returned to normal. He approached the downed blonde and began to speak. "Naruto, you need to trust me. As your best friend, I beg you to hear me out. I need to do this on my own, so don't follow me. I promise I will return one day, but until then, forget about me. Goodbye." And with that Sasuke continued on his way.

Naruto, as injured as he was, just lied there for a while. He finally attempted to move, and winced. He didn't stop though. He would prove that he didn't need accelerated healing, if only to himself. He would reach the village two days later to a few relieved people and some sad news.

xxxxx

Konjyoyaki was finally prepared. He was in a tree a few feet behind his opponent. With a deep breath, he leapt towards him, creating a blade. Kimimaro turned and shot a few bone bullets from his fingers. Konjyoyaki tried to alter his course, but the projectiles hit his shoulder, resulting in a burst of smoke.

Kimimaro's eyes widened as he turned around. _'Kage bunshin?!?'_ he scanned the area around him as he searched for the real one. He never knew he died as his head rolled around on the ground and his body dropped, blood showering from his neck.

Konjyoyaki smirked. _'It worked.'_ What had exactly happened? Using the wire, Konjyoyaki had tied the smoke bombs to his arm, then, using the extra chakra gained from the pill, had created the strongest blade he could, allowing him to slice through the bone armor.

Now, here was a rather obscure fact. Smoke bombs were a rather powerful impact explosive when used in the right way. Konjyoyaki weakly looked down at the heavily bleeding stump that used to be his right arm. As he scanned the area, he couldn't find it anywhere.

Grasping his stump, Konjyoyaki made his way into the forest. He eventually found a river, where he knelt down to both clean out his wound and take a drink. He then flared his chakra, taxing his already strained reserves. It didn't take long for someone to find him.

"Konjyoyaki-san."

"Taiki." Sure enough, the man was slowly approaching him. He was looking at where his arm was supposed to be

"Don't worry, everything will be fine soon." Konjyoyaki's eyes narrowed at that. Taiki was the type that would freak out at seeing this. He barely moved in time as a knife slashed its way through the air. He wasn't fast enough, as the knife caught the right side of his face, more importantly, his right eye. He grunted in pain as the knife soon found itself in his liver.

He coughed up some blood as he leaned up against his killer. "You're not Taiki."

"Really? What gave it away? Truthfully, he's been dead for a few months now. In fact, it was around this spot that I killed him. Now isn't that ironic?" Taiki soon found himself going numb and looked down.

Through his stomach was a blade. Konjyoyaki then whispered in his ear. If I'm going down, you're coming with me." With that, both fell in the river and disappeared into the water's depths.

It was minutes later that Yagura arrived. He knelt down and punched the ground. _'Damnit! I was too slow!'_

'_**When will you learn that you can't change the future?'**_

'Shut up. Damnit, I know a few people are going to be devastated by this. Might as well go tell them.'

With that he left. A couple hundred meters away, Zetsu emerged from a tree. "Hmm, this was the last place I felt his chakra." He looked around and, soon enough, spotted an arm. Upon closer inspection, he found a ring on its index finger. **"Shit, the fucker died." **"What a shame, he was a good friend." **"And now he'll make a good meal. Part of him, anyway. Come on, we have to report this."** Without another word, the man fazed into the ground with the last piece of evidence Konjyoyaki left behind.

xxxxx

Oh my god, I killed Konjyoyaki… and Kimimaro… and Taiki… again. The truth is, this was his purpose from the start. I never intended for him to play such a big role. Oh well, one chapter left.

Next time… well I really don't want to give anything away, but you'll probably hate me. Also, sorry if I seem to make Naruto seem so under powered, but really, if you were immortal, wouldn't you be lazy and find no need to better yourself. Fear not. In the sequel, he will be more serious. Well, see ya in about two weeks.


	15. Cataclysm

First off, allow me to welcome you to what will be the final chapter to this part of the Bloody Prayer saga. With that out of the way, let me please beg of you to not hate me for how I did this. I already hate myself for it, and, truthfully, have been thinking of it since chapter four, but it was the best segway I could come up with. So, before you actually read the chapter, promise me you'll read the first three chapters of the sequel _at least _before writing me off completely. Also, sorry for the length, or lack thereof. And now, onto why I have stressed this point.

xxxxx

Disclaimer: Do you really want me to own Naruto? I didn't think so.

xxxxx

Chapter 15: The Cataclysm

"I regret to inform you that Konjyoyaki has died." Silence prevailed through out the room as Naruto, Haku Zabuza and Kakashi just stared at Yagura. All parties in the vicinity were speechless, thinking that perhaps they had misheard the speaker.

"What?" asked Haku, who, along with Zabuza, had been deemed well enough to leave. The purple-eyed Mizukage shook his head woefully.

"I said Konjyoyaki is no longer with us in this world. His funeral will be held in three days time." With that Yagura left. A teary-eyed Haku hid her head in Naruto's chest, who had been confined to a hospital bed to heal from his injuries that had been inflicted by Sasuke, who's status by now had swept through the village like the country's namesake.

Naruto just rubbed soothing circles in the sobbing girls back as he replayed the man's last words in his head. _'The bastard knew he might die.'_ The realization was painful but true as he looked down at the man's last living relative. How was he supposed to tell her?

He would think of a way, but now wasn't the time. He noticed both Zabuza and Kakashi had stepped out of the room, but decided that it wasn't important. Right now, he had to make sure he was were it mattered, and that was at his girlfriend's side in her time of need.

xxxxx

Three days later, all who had been located with Naruto in the hospital were surrounding a closed casket with a picture of Konjyoyaki in front of it. With the aid of crutches, Naruto was allowed to leave, though many wondered why the blonde wasn't healing like normal.

The sky was barley overcast, as if the world didn't give a damn that someone died, or perhaps the world just wasn't aware of the man's existence. Before long, the coffin was lowered into the ground and buried with dirt by Yagura and Kakashi, as Zabuza watched forlornly and Naruto held a crying Haku.

"I remember when I first met him." said Yagura out of the blue as everyone stared at him. "He was a kid, no older than ten. I was returning from a trip I had recently taken, when I encountered a bloody boy. He was in obvious pain and collapsed before I could get to him. I visited him in the hospital everyday and grew attached to him. He became like a son to me. He never did tell me why he was in the state he was, only that he had to find someone." He stopped, obviously done with his tale. He started to leave. "He really did care for people, he just didn't show it."

"I should probably leave too. Sorry for your loss Haku-chan, Zabuza." Kakashi nodded to them before he also walked away. Haku just stared at the grave. Eventually, she turned and began to leave, Zabuza following.

"See ya, kid." Was all Zabuza said as he tried to catch up with Haku. Naruto was lost in thought.

'_Why did he do it? Why? He probably had better reason to live than I did. Was I because he felt bad for Haku? Damnit, even when he's dead he pisses me off.'_ With that, Naruto also left, leaving the cemetery empty.

xxxxx

In the Akatsuki cave, only eight figures were present. The leader's hologram spoke. "Itachi, Kisame, how was the mission?"

The two bowed their heads. "We failed the mission when reinforcements from Kiri arrived. We couldn't proceed without blowing cover completely." Said Itachi.

"I see. I am disappointed in you two. Now Zetsu, you said you had something to report?"

"Yes. I have Konjyoyaki's ring and arm._" _**"When should I deliver it?"** everyone looked in shock at the plant man.

"Right away. Kisame, Itachi, don't leave Zetsu to do your work. If there's nothing else, dismissed." And the cave was immersed in darkness once again.

xxxxx

It was a few days later when Naruto received a knock on his door. He was just about to make lunch and from his kitchen called, "Who the fuck is it?"

"It's me, now open the fucking door!" Naruto recognized the voice as Zabuza's and reluctantly pulled himself from his work to open the door.

"You going somewhere?" Zabuza was there with a pack slung over his shoulder and all of his equipment. He allowed the man inside as he went back to his work in the kitchen.

"Yeah, I've been assigned a mission and am gonna' be outta' the village for about two weeks."

"That's nice, so why are you here?" Naruto brought his lunch over to the table and then walked back to the sink to clean up his mess.

"Listen kid, Haku's still pretty shaken up about Konjyoyaki's death. With me being gone, I want you to drop by everyday, make sure she's all right. Can ya do that?" Naruto paused in his cleaning as he thought it over. It didn't take long.

"Of course I can do that."

"Thanks. See ya in two weeks!" and with that, Zabuza was off, closing the door on his way out.

"What an idiot." Naruto said to himself. "Like I'd say no." Naruto then turned around, ready to eat, only to notice an empty spot on his table. "Damnit! Fucker took my sandwich!"

xxxxx

After Naruto had remade his lunch, he decided he might stop by on Haku. He knocked and a few seconds later heard her say, "Come in." he opened the door and proceeded into the apartment. He saw Haku sitting on the couch, reading a book. She looked up and greeted him with a small smile. "Hey Naruto-kun. Did Zabuza-san send you to check up on me?"

Naruto gave a nervous laugh. "What makes you say that?" Haku got off the couch and embraced him.

"So, how are you doing?"

"Not bad. Doctor says I won't need the crutches by tomarrow. What about you? How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine. It's still hard to believe, but I'll get over it." Haku sighed and sat back down on the couch, Naruto following her.

"So, whatcha' reading?"

"Oh, just a little story. Nothing special."

"Mind if I join you?" and so, most of the day was spent with Haku reading her book and Naruto reading over her shoulder.

xxxxx

The next few days had gone by in a similar manner, with Haku and Naruto just relaxing and spending time with each other. Kakashi had suspended training until further notice, as he was taking on various missions to help Konoha. This day was no different, and as Naruto was getting ready to go home, Haku called him back.

"Hey, Naruto-kun?" Naruto turned around to face his girlfriend, wondering what she wanted.

"Yeah?"

"Tomorrow's your birthday, right?" Naruto froze. That was right, he had completely forgotten.

"Hmm, I guess it is." He said as he rubbed his head. Haku got up from he position on the couch and approached him. She embraced him and gave him a pack on the lips. He was a bit shocked at this.

"Come over early tomarrow and we'll go someplace special."

Naruto let out a small grin. "Sure thing, Haku-chan." And with one last kiss, he was off. Haku let out a sigh as her boyfriend left and looked at the clock. It read 7:38.

'_Well, better start the preparations.'_ And with that, she got to work.

xxxxx

A sharp knock on the door awoke Haku from her slumber at the table. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she looked around the dark room until she found the clock, illuminated by the streetlights outside. It read 5:14.

'_Is that Naruto-kun. I know I told him to come over early, but this is inhuman.'_ She wearily made her way towards the door as another knock sounded. She let out a yawn as she opened the door.

"Not a morning person, eh?" Haku froze at the voice. It was one kindness, but she knew that under that kindness was a sharp blade, just waiting to stab the person nearest to it.

Now fully awake and on guard, Haku spoke with no small amount of fear in her voice, no matter how hard she tried to mask it. "What do you want?"

The voice held mirth in it as it spoke. "Oh, just for a certain someone to suffer. But to do that, I need to take away everything he loves, like he did to me." And with that, Haku was enveloped in darkness.

xxxxx

Naruto awoke with a start, cold sweat dripping from his face and chest. _'What was that about?'_ the clock read 5:20, so he tried to shrug it off and go back to bed. _'But I can't shake this feeling that something bad is happening. And that voice, it sounded familiar, I just can't place it.' _

Fearing the worst, Naruto hurriedly threw some clothes on and rushed to Haku's apartment. He gave a loud knock when he arrived, but was shocked when the door swung open a bit.

Slowly, he reached out with a trembling hand as he started to sweat and opened the door completely. "No." he whispered quietly to himself. Inside, the apartment was a mess, multiple furnishings tipped over or broken. It was obvious a struggle had taken place.

Suddenly, a cold feeling hit him. Looking over to his left, he saw the window was open and a breeze was coming through. A molten rage slowly began to envelop him as his sweat started to turn to steam.

"Not on my fucking watch." He said in a deadly tone. In a flash he was out the window in the direction he suspected to perpetrator to have gone. All the while, a certain plant man followed him. He was recently assigned to follow him, after all. But, more importantly, he was to protect him.

xxxxx

Naruto didn't know how, but he just had a feeling he knew where Haku was. He traveled further into the forest, faster and faster still, despite the agonizing throbbing in his legs. It only served to fuel his ever-increasing rage.

As the sun began to rise, he reached a clearing that he saw a shadowed figure standing in. he instantly knew he was the cause of all this. He was standing by a river, looking into its depths. He landed right by him and got a better look at them.

They were dressed in grey robes with a hood thrown up over his head. And he was tall. Almost seven feet. The figure spoke in that same familiar tone. "How nice of you to join me, Naruto-chan."

Naruto just shook as his rage built. "Where's Haku-chan?" his voice was quiet, and you could feel the heat as he spoke.

"My, you sound mad. Try to take a deep breath, Naruto-chan." Said the man in his calm voice, expressing faux concern. He laughed afterwards, making the blonde angrier.

"Tell me where she is you piece of shit!" his voice was forceful, as everything grew quiet, sans the river. The grass around Naruto started to char as the hooded man turned to him, a glint catching from the inside of his hood.

"Now, that's not very nice." Naruto growled as he started to glow a light red. The figure sighed. "Hmm, guess there's no reasoning with you. I tied her up and threw her in the river right before you got here."

Naruto froze as the glow disappeared and the grass stopped burning. "What?" he asked, whishing it was a dream. The man began to chuckle.

"Yeah, you should have seen her squirm, the fear in her eyes. The rush of adrenaline you get knowing they are helpless and the fact that to them, you stand next to God. But, you know all about that, don't you? How it is to kill innocents." the man began to laugh in an insane manner as Naruto slumped to his knees knowing he had failed.

He felt as if recently his life had been a mistake. First Sasuke, then Konjyoyaki, now Haku. He couldn't do anything right. He just stared at the crazy man. The next words spoken just caused him to snap.

"She was pathetic. Getting her trust was easy. It made it all the more enjoyable seeing the betrayal on her face. She was stupid, just like you."

Naruto interrupted him as he spoke in a cold, emotionless voice as he looked to the ground. "No, she wasn't. I was for letting her become attached to me. It's my fault. But I'm still gonna' make you pay."

The man laughed again. "How?!? You can't possibly wound me like I've done to you!" he kept laughing.

Naruto kept looking at the ground as he ignored the man. A cold rage built in him as he shook. Then, the proverbial dam broke as red chakra virtually exploded from him, spreading to a mile radius from the epicenter. Everything in that area was masked by a red glow, and when the power finally vanished, the trees were the only living things left in the wake of the blast. All was quiet.

xxxxx

And there you have. Let the hate mail flow in. So, please just try the sequel before you decide to hunt me down and rip me to shreds. Check my profile no later than February 1 to find it. 'Till then, I'm gonna' go drink myself under the table and try not to let my depression take a hold of me. Will I survive? Tune in to find out.


	16. EPIC AUTHOR'S NOTE not

Okay, hey there. You know, I never expected to actually do this, as I had assumed that I had made the issue clear last chapter. However, a review, who shall remain nameless just because, introduced me to the cold, hard bitch-slap called reality. I sent a PM to the guy to clear it up with him personally, but it left me wondering how many other poor, lost sheep are out there, not knowing where to go. Thus, here we are.

As you have no doubt noticed by now, this is not a chapter, but an authors note. Now, enough confusing banter, onto why you are here; the reason for this. You see, the review who shall remain nameless asked me, and I'm paraphrasing here, 'Dude, where the fuck is the next chapter of 'Bloody Prayer'?' well, to put it simply, it's out. Fuck, at this point in time, the next 14 chapters are out, with number 15 in the works.

Now, not so insightful reader, is you are reading this, you are probably thinking, 'But Mr. Acolyte, this story has only 16 selections including this one!' Well, yes, but that's because those chapters don't go under the title 'Bloody Prayer', instead culminating into a different story entitled 'Mistakes In Blood', yet is still directly connecting to this story, picking up right where it left off.

You know, I don't even know why I'm doing this. I thought I had made it clear by saying, 'Go to my profile and click on the other story there.' You know, the only other one that has 'blood' in the title. Fuck, at the time it was the only other story there! For those of you who need further clarification, it's a Naruto and Rosario+Vampire crossover, and a damn good one, if I do say so myself, and, quoting a different reviewer, 'A highly under appreciated work just like your other other fanfiction.'

So, yeah, nice review. So, to sum everything up, if you enjoyed this story, are wondering where the fuck the continuation of it is, and find yourself having a feeling of excitement at the prospect of reading a Rosario+Vampire fic like no other (that I know of), check out 'Mistakes In Blood'! If not, just give it a chance. This... 'chapter'(?) was 414 words long, and is brought to you by your fellow author, Acolyte of Truth. Now to see just how many of you out there managed to not find the other story originally.


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